Enhanced bamboo composite with protective coating for structural concrete application

Potential application of newly developed bamboo composite material as structural reinforcement called forth for durability test and bond strength examination. Firstly, durability of bamboo composite material and effectiveness of protective epoxy coating were evaluated by subjecting samples to various corrosive environments normally encountered during the life span of construction materials. At accelerated conditions, samples were immersed in water, simulated acidic rain solution and simulated concrete pore water solution for 28 days. Tensile tests and microstructural analysis were conducted to investigate the impact of different corrosive environments on the bamboo composite material's behavior. The results revealed that the application of epoxy coating successfully protected bamboo composite material's integrity without substantially affecting its mechanical capacity, particularly in acidic environment. Secondly, bond strength between bamboo composite material and concrete was investigated through pull-out tests. The epoxy coating improved the bond strength, especially with addition of sand particles. The findings of this study suggest that epoxy coating can be an effective approach to simultaneously enhance the bamboo composite material's resistance towards acid attack and improve its bond strength with concrete for concrete reinforcement application.