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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND O F THE STUDY

We live in a world filled with concret e. China alone uses 1.5 gi gatons of concret e per year . The main

ingredi ents in creating concret e is P ortland cement. In creating Portland cem ent you must have a mining

operation, i ntensive grinding operation and a kiln fi red up at 2700 F that is a ton of energy with a lot of CO2 emission which is harmful to the atm osphere as st ated b y Frank S esno of Planet Forward .

Concrete has about 50 years before it shows si gns of deca y. The probl em is not just the concrete , but due to the seepage of wat er inside the to concret e five making its the own

reinforcem ent

expanded

fou r

fol d s

diamet er. The lifespan of concret e is not onl y shorter than masonr y, but it i s probabl y short er t han t hat of a wood as

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written in Robert Courtlands book Concrete planet makes clear.

Pol yst yrene are rec ycl able plasti c, which mean it could l ast for t housands of years. Expanded pol yst yrene are made b y compressing Expanded Pol yst yrene Beads in a steam mol der shown in how to make EPS ( youtube) .

Expanded pol yst yrene are m anufactured into large blocks. Expanded pol yst yrene densit y could be increase for structural purposes or also known as Geofoam. Geofoams are expanded pol yst yrene desi gn for const ructi on. The common uses of Geofoams are road construction over poor soils, road widening, bridge abutment , bridge under fill, culverts, pipelines and buried struct ures, compensating foundation, rail em bankm ent, l andscapi ng and veget ative green roofs, ret aining and buried wall backfill, slope stabilization, st adium and theat er sea ti ng, levees, ai rport runwa y/taxiwa y, foundations for li ght wei ght structures, speci al appli cations (noise and vi bration damping,

compressibl e application, seismic appli cation, perm afrost

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embankments, rock fall /impact prot ect ion). Geofoams is light wei ght , its wei ght vari es from 11.2 -45.7 kilograms per cubic m eter ( 0.7 to 2.85 per cubi c foot) as stated b y The EPS Alliance.

RATIONALE

This

research

is

conduct ed

to

provide

wide

knowledge regardi ng EPS with a steel reinforcement which is creat ed t o be fl am mable resistant. Since pol yst yrene is a kind of plasti c which is hi ghl y sensitivit y with hi gh temperature, concrete cover is provided with a certai n thickness to achi eve its complet e resisti vit y towards heat . It is also a ver y economical and li ght wei g ht mat eri al which is a goo d alternative building materi al . Fut ure devel opment is indeed a great help to achi eve vari et y of test towards its strength capacit y and ideal usage.

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CONCE PT UAL FRAMEWORK

IDEA AND CONCEPT

BOOK JOURNAL INTERNET

PROCESS

MATERIALS REINFORCING MOLDING CURING TESTING DATA ANALYSIS

OUTPUT

REINFORCED EXPANDED POLYSTYRENE

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OBJECTIVE O F T HE STUDY :

GENERAL OBJECTIVE

To make use of EPS as an effective, reli able, and friendl y for construction industr y, proving its economic compet enc y and to prove that it can be a good alternative building m aterial. ESP production will lessen the toxicit y on earth compare to the production of concrete cement.

SPECIFIC OBJE CTIVE

Guided b y the given research , the research obj ectives are:

To introduce EPS as a bett er alternative materials for building houses.

To conduct test for EPS regarding its bond behavior and compressive strengt h combined with concrete .

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To promote EPS as a more economical material with a longer usage of tim e.

To strengthen EPS by adding reinforcem ents. To provide a li ght weight non flamm able materi al.

STATEMENT O F T HE PROBLEM

The stud y sought to introduce an al ternative building materi al. What are the characteristics of EPS t hat m ade it as an effective, reliabl e, and fri endl y for const ruction indust r y? What makes EPS a better alternative m aterial for building houses? What are the test t o be conducted t o determine the bond behavior and el astic properties of EPS? What makes EPS more economical mat erials? How effective reinforcements for EPS? How to provi de a li ghtwei ght nonfl ammable mat eri al.

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HYPOTHESIS

Expanded Pol yst yrene is a plasti c material strong in compression. We expect that b y provi ding it with rebar, i t will strengthen due to the reinforci ng of the tensi on. Since it is plastic we wil l add a concret e cover to remove its tendenc y to i gnit e and to increase its compressive st rength. We would place the rebar parti all y embedded to the expanded pol yst yrene to increase its life span because the life span of the concrete decreas es as t he rebar are expose to outside chemicals so b y hi ding it parti all y in the expanded pol yst yrene we could reduce the exposure of substance i n the rebar.

SCOPE AND LIMITATION

This stud y was conduct ed to create an alternative building mat eri a l for struct ural members.

The use of Expanded Pol yst yrene as a substitute for the traditional concrete in structural m embers t hat it can

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provide

low

cost

light

we i ght

m aterial,

which

is

rel ativel y strong due to rei nforcements.

The r atio of concrete cover with respect to the Expanded Pol yst yrene, to know the fi re resisti vit y needed by t he Expanded Pol yst yrene to avoid i gnition.

SIGNIFICANCE O F THE STUDY

The

research

will

provide

wide

knowl edge

regardi ng EPS as an alternative buildi ng materi al. The research will develop economi cal products that

is more suit able in l ong term buil ding construction and that are eas y to produce. To be more familiari zed with the benefit s of EPS and

its concrete bonding behavior. The research will show the effective ness of EPS with

steel reinforcements.

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DE FINITION O F T ERMS

Pol ystyren e - a s yn thetic thermopl astic material obt ained by pol ym erizing st yrene; used as a white ri gid foam ( expanded polystyrene ) for insulating and packing and as a glasslike m aterial in light fittings and water t anks

Expanded polystyrene or extruded pol yst yrene (XPS) these are m ade b y compressing expanded pol yst yrene beads and m anufactured into large li ght wei ght blocks.

Geofoam are expanded pol yst yrene t hat are made for construction purposes.

Reinforcement - something conjoined t o or enlargement of something

Concrete - is a composite m aterial composed of coarse granular material (t he aggregate or fill er) embedded in a hard m atrix of mat erial (the cement or bi nder) that fills the space among t he aggregate particl es and glues them together.

Compressive stren gth - is the capaci t y of a m ateri al or structure to withst and loads t ending to reduce size. It can

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be measured b y plot t ing applied force against deform ation in a t esting m achine.

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11

CHAPTER 2

REVIEW O F RELATED LITERATURE

Pol ystyren e

(Court es y b y Wikipedia)

One of the characteristic of pol yst yrene i s cl ear, hard and brittle, it can be ri gid or foamed. It is a ver y inexpensive resin per unit wei ght. It is a rather poor barrier to ox ygen and wat er vapor and has a relativel y low melting point. Pol yst yrene is one of the most widel y used plastics, the scale of its production being several billion kilograms per year. This can be naturall y t ransparent, but can be colored with colorants.

As a thermoplasti c pol ym er, pol yst yrene is in a solid (glass y) st ate at room temperature but flows if heated above about 100 C, its glass transiti on temperature. It becom es ri gid agai n when cool ed. This t emperature

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behavior i s exploited for extrusion, a nd also for molding and vacuum forming, since it can be cast into molds with fine det ail.

It is ver y slow to decompose and therefore a focus of controvers y, since it is oft en abundant as a form of litter in the outdoor environment, parti cularl y along shore s and waterwa ys especi all y in its foam form.

History of Polystyrene

Pol yst yrene

was

discovered

in

1839

by Eduard

Simon, an apothecary in Berlin. From st orax, the resin of the Turkish sweet gum tree Liquidam bar ori entalis, he distilled an oil y substance, a m onom er that he nam ed st yrol. S everal da ys later, Simon found that the st yrol had thickened, presum abl y from oxidation, into a j ell y he dubbed st yrol oxide ("St yrolox yd"). By 1845 Jamaican born chemist John Buddle Bl yth and German chemist August Wilhelm von Hofm ann showed that the same transform ation of st yrol took pl ace i n the absence of ox ygen. The y call ed their substance met ast yrol. Anal ysi s

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later showed that it was chemicall y identical to St yrolox yd. In 1866 Marcelin of Berthel ot correct l y from years identifi ed st yrol later it as the a

form ation

m etast yrol/St yrolox yd process. About 80

pol ym eriz ation

was

realized that heating of st yrol starts a chain reaction that produces macrom olecules, following the thesis of Germ an organic chemist Hermann Staudinger (1881 1965). This event uall y led to the substance receivi ng its present name, pol yst yrene.

The compan y I. G. Farben began m anufact uring pol yst yrene in Ludwigshafen, about 1931, hoping it would be a suit able repl acement for di e -cast zinc in m an y application s. Success was achi eved when the y developed a reactor vessel that extruded pol yst yrene through a heated tube and cutter, producing pol yst yrene in pellet form.

In process.

1941,

Dow

Chemical

invent ed

St yrofoam

Before 1949, the chemical engineer Fritz Stas tn y (1908 1985) developed pre -expanded P S beads b y

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incorporating aliphatic h ydrocarbons, such as pent ane. These beads are the raw material for moulding parts or extruding sheets. BASF and Stast n y applied for a pat ent that was issued i n 1949. The moul ding process was demonst rat ed at the Kunststoff Messe 1952 in Dsseldorf. Products were nam ed St yropor.

The cr ystal structure of isotactic pol yst yrene was reported b y Giulio Natta.

In 1954, the Koppers Compan y, Inc. in Pittsburgh, Penns ylvania, foam. develop ed expanded pol yst yrene (EPS)

In 1988, the fi rst U.S. ban of general pol yst yrene foam was enact ed in Berkele y, Cali forni a

Structure of Polystyren e

Pol yst yrene is flam mable.

In chemi cal terms, pol yst yrene is a long chai n

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hydrocarbon wherei n alternatin g carbon cent ers are

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attached to phen yl groups (t he name given to the arom atic ring benzene). Pol yst yrene's chemical formula is (C8H8) n; it contai ns the chemi cal elem ents carbon and h ydrogen.

When heat ed (or deform ed at a rapid rate, due to a combination of viscoel astic and t herm al insulation

properties), the chai ns are able to take on a hi gher degree of conform ation and slide past each other. Thi s

intermol ecul ar weakness (versus the high int ramol ecular strengt h due to the h ydrocarbon backbone) confers

flexibilit y and el ast icit y. The abilit y of the s ystem to be readil y deformed above its gl ass t ransition temperature allows pol yst yrene (and thermopl astic pol ym ers in general) to be readil y softened and m olded upon heating.

Extruded pol yst yrene is about as strong as an unallo yed aluminum, but much more fl exible and much li ghter (1.05 g/ cm3 vs. 2.70 g/cm 3 for aluminum).

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Degradation of Pol ystyrene

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Pol yst yrene is ver y chemi call y inert, bei ng resistant

to acids and bases but is easil y dissol ved b y d -limonene. Because of its resilience and inertness, it is used to fabricate m an y obj ects of commerce. It is attacked b y m an y organic sol vents, which dissolve the pol ymer.

Like all organic compounds, pol yst yr ene burns to give carbon dioxide and wat er vapor. Pol yst yrene, being an arom atic h ydrocarbon, t ypi call y combusts incomplet el y as indicat ed b y the soot y flam e.

Forms Produced of Pol ystyren e

Pol yst yrene is com monl y injection mol ded , vacuum form ed, or extruded, while expanded pol yst yrene is either extruded or m olded in a speci al process.

Pol yst yrene copol ym ers are also produced; these contai n one or more other monomers in addi tion to st yrene. In recent years the expanded pol yst yrene composites with cellulose and starch have also been produced. Pol yst yrene

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is used in some pol ymer-bonded explosives (P BX).

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Foams of Polystyrene

Pol yst yrene foams are good therm al i nsulators and are therefore oft en used as buil ding insulation mat eri als, such as in insul ating panel concret e forms s yst ems. and structural Pol yst yrene

insulated

building

incorporating graphite has superior insulation pr operti es. The y are also used for non -wei ght -bearing architectural structures (such as ornam ental pillars).

Expanded Polystyrene

Expanded pol yst yrene (EPS) is a ri gi d and tough, closed -cell foam . It is usuall y whit e and m ade of pre expanded pol yst yre ne bea ds. Other uses include molded sheets for building insul ation and packing m at erial

("peanuts") for cushioning fragil e items inside boxes. Sheets are commonl y packaged as ri gid panels (size 4 b y 8 or 2 b y 8 feet in the United Stat es), whi ch are also known

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as "bead -board".

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Due to its techni cal properties such as low wei ght,

ri gidit y, and formabilit y, EPS can be used in a wi de range of different applicat ions. Its market val ue is likel y t o rise to more than US$15 billion until 2020.

Therm al conducti vity is measured according to EN 12667. T ypi cal val ues range from 0.032 to 0.038 W/(mK) depending on the densit y of the EPS board. The value of 0.038 W/(mK) was obtained at 15 kg/ m3 while the value of 0.032 W/(mK) was obt ained at 40 kg/m3 according to the dat a sheet of K -710 from St yroChem Finland. Adding fillers (graphites, aluminum, or carbons) has recentl y allowed the therm al conductivit y of EP S to reach around 0.030 0.034 (as low as 0.029) and as such has a gre y/bl ack color which distinguishes it from st and ard EPS. Several EPS producers have produced a variet y of these i ncreased therm al resist ance EPS usage for this product in the UK & EU.

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Water vapor diffusion resistance () of EPS is around 30 70.

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ICC -ES ( Int ernational Code Council Evaluation

Service) requi res EPS boards used in bui lding construction meet ASTM C578 requirem ents. One of t hese requirements is that t he ox ygen index of EPS as m easured b y ASTM D2863 be greater than 24 volume %. Typi cal EPS has an ox ygen index of around 18 volume %; thus, a fl a me ret ardant such as HBC D (hexabromocyclododecane), is added to st yrene or pol yst yrene during the form ation of EPS.

The boards containi ng HBCD when t est ed in a t unnel using test method UL 723 or AS TM E84 will have a flam e spread index of l ess than 25 and a smoke-devel oped index of less than 450. IC C -ES requires the use of a 15 -minute therm al barri er when EPS boards are used inside of a building.

According to EPS - IA IC F organization, the t ypi cal

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densit y of EPS used for insul ated concrete forms is 1.35 to 1.80 pcf. This is eit her T ype II or T ype IX EPS according to ASTM C578. EP S blocks or boards used in building construction are com monl y cut using hot wires,

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Extruded Polystyrene Foam

Extruded pol yst yrene foam (XPS) consi sts of closed cells, offers im proved surface roughness and hi gher

stiffness and reduced thermal conduct ivit y. The densit y range is about 28 45 kg/m3.

Extruded pol yst yrene material is also used in crafts and model building, in parti cular architectural models. Because of the extrusion m anufact u ring process, XPS does not require facers to maint ain its t herm al or ph ysi cal propert y perform ance. Thus, it makes a more uni form substitute for corrugated cardboard. Therm al resisti vit y i s usuall y about 35 m K/W (or R -5 per inch in Am erican customar y unit s) but can range between 29 and 39 mK/W

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depending on bearing/densit y. Therm al conductivit y varies between 0.029 and 0.039 W/(mK) depending on bearing strengt h/densit y and the average value is ~0.035 W/(m K). Water vapour diffusion resistance () of XPS i s around 80 250 and so makes it more suitable to wetter environments than EPS.

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Environ men tal Issu es of Polystyrene

Production Pol yst yrene foams are produced using blowi ng

agents that form bubbles and expand the foam. In expanded pol yst yrene, pentane, these are usuall y pose a h ydrocarbons fl amm abilit y such hazard as in

whi ch

may

manufact uring or st orage of newl y manufactured m ateri al, but have relativel y mild environment al impact. Extruded pol yst yrene is usuall y m ade with hydrofl uorocarbons

(HFC-134a), w hich have global warming potentials of approximatel y 1000 1300 times that of carbon di oxide.

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Non-biodegradable Discarded pol yst yr ene does not decompose for

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hundreds of years and is resistant to phot ol ysis. Recycling Due to the low densit y of pol yst yrene foam, it is not economical to coll ect. However, if the waste mat eri al goes through an initi al compaction process, the mat eri al changes

densit y from t ypi cal l y 30 kg/m3 to 330 kg/m3 and becomes a rec ycl able comm odit y o f hi gh value for producers of rec ycl ed pl astic pell ets. Expanded pol yst yrene scrap can be easil y added to products such as EPS insulation sheets and other EPS material s for const ructi on applications; man y manufact urers cannot obtain suffi cient scrap becaus e of collection issues. Rec ycled EPS is al so used in m an y m etal casting operations. R astra is made from EPS that is combined with cem ent to be used as an i nsulating amendm ent in the making of concret e foundati ons and walls. American

manufact urers have pro duced insul ati ng concret e forms made with approximatel y 80% rec ycled EPS since 1993.

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Incineration If pol yst yrene is properl y incinerated at hi gh

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temperatures (up t o 1000 C) and with plent y of ai r (14 m3/kg), the chemi cals generated are wat er, carbon dio xide, and possibl y small amounts of resi dual halogen -compounds from flam e-ret ardant s. If onl y incompl ete incineration is

done, there will also be l eftover carbon soot and a compl ex mixture of vol atile compounds. Accordi ng to the Am eri can Chemistr y C ounci l , when pol yst yrene is inci nerat ed in modern facilities, t he final volum e is 1% of the starting volume; most of the pol yst yrene is convert ed int o carbon dioxide, water vapor, and heat. Because of the amount of heat released, it is sometimes used as a power source for steam or electri cit y generati on. When pol yst yrene was burned at tem peratures of 800 900 C (t he t ypical range of a modern incinerator), the products of combust ion consist ed of "a complex mixture of pol yc yclic aromati c h ydrocarbons (P AHs) from a lk yl

benzenes to benzoper yl ene. Over 90 different compounds were identifi ed in combustion effluents from pol yst yrene."

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Fi re H azards of Pol ystyrene Pol yst yrene is hi ghl y flamm able or Easil y Ignit ed product based on D IN4102 - Fire Test to Building Mat eri al.

Therefore, it must be conceal ed behind dr ywall, sheet met al or concret e.

Pol ystyren e Foam Report

(Earth Resources Foundation)

Pol yst yrene is co mm onl y known as St yrofoam. It is a petrol eum - based pl astic made from t he st yrene monomer. It i s a light - wei ght m ateri al with ver y good insulation properti es and is used in all t ypes of products.

A Century From Now Concrete Will Be Nothing But Rubble

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(Ro bert Courlands 2011 Book: Concret e Planet)

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Courland writes that our infrast ruct ure ma y l ast l ess than a centur y. In the ocean, concret e shows si gns of

deca y withi n 50 years according to Mari e Jackson at Lawrence Berkel e y National Laborator y.

Despit e this, builders, archit ects and engineers continue to solve the problem between the concret e and steel. It is not jus t about the concrete but also the i ron and t he steel rebar reinforcem ent insi de. Cracks can be fixed, but when air, moisture, and chemi cals seep into reinforced concret e, the rebar rusts, expanding i n diamet er four or five -fold, whi ch destro ys the surrounding concrete,

Courland sa ys that engineers and architects have known about this problem a long time, yet either refuse to admit it or dont thi nk it m atters. The main theme of this book is that it does matter, as Courl and explains in these three excerpts:

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1) The lifespan of concret e is not onl y short er than masonr y, it is probabl y l ess than that of woodWe have built a disposable world usin g a short -lived m aterial, the manufact ure of which generat es mil lions of tons of

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greenhouse gases. 2) Even more troubling is that all this steel -

reinforced concret e t hat we use for buildi ng our roads,

buildings, bridges, sewer pipes, and sidewalks is ultimatel y expendable, so we will have to keep rebuilding them ever y coupl e of generations, adding more pol lution and expense for our descendant s to bear. Most of the concrete

structures built at t he beginning of the 20th centur y have begun falling apart, and most will be, or alread y have been, demolished.

3) The world we have built over the l ast centur y is deca ying at an alarming rate. Our infrast ructure is

especiall y terribl e: 1 in 4 bridges are either structurall y defi cient or

structurall y obsol ete

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The service life of most reinforced concret e hi ghwa y bridges is 50 years, and their average age is 42 years. Besides our crumbling hi ghwa y s yst em, the reinforced concret e used for our water conduits, sewer pipes, wat er treatment plants, and pumping stations is al so

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disintegrating. The chemi cals and bact eria in sewage m ake it almost as corrosive as seawater, reduci ng the li fe span of

the reinforced concrete used in these s ystems to 50 years of less. We know theres a problem , we know how to fix it and yet theres no pressure to do it, because its cheaper to do it the wrong way, especi all y in a ti me of ti ght credit. To do it ri ght, it costs a bit more up front, but the pa yback is tens of trillions of dollars in saved fut ure costs. I predi ct Capitalism s short -term focus will prevent long -lasting concret e projects from coming to fruition. On top of that, theres no demand from the public, journalist s, engineers, or architects. There has not been

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an y out cr y since this book was published to build with long-lasting concret e in the future that I can find, though before the book was published, the National Institut e of Standards & Technology Engineering Laborator y funded research to prevent concret e from cracking in a program call ed REACT: R educing Earl y -Age Cracking Toda y. In

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2007, the National Infrastructure Improvem ent Act, to establish a National Commission on the Infrastructure of

the United States, passed in the Senat e but fail ed in the House.

Peak Energy and Concrete

B y: Alice Fri edem ann

Cement i s the thi rd largest source of CO2 after vehicl es and coal -fueled power pl ants. Accordi ng to the World Coal Associ ation, large am ounts of energy are requi red to produce cem ent, around 450 grams of coal per 900 grams of cem ent produced. Lim est one is heat ed w ith

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fossil fuels up t o 2,642 degrees Fahrenheit and causes 7% of global carbon di oxide emissions per year. Our descendants wont be driving m uch. The yll

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probabl y wish we had converted most of the roads to farml and, whi ch wil l take cent uries even after th e cem ent is gone for the soil to recover wh y not start now? Stop maintaining roads in the national forests, rural areas, and wherever else it makes sense let them return to gravel,

jackhammer and remove the rubble whi le we still have the energy to d o so.

De-paving

and

de -damming

woul d

also

restore

streams, fisheries, wetlands, and ecosyst ems for future generati ons. Future generations eventuall y wont have the energy to maintai n, repai r, or rebuild very m an y concrete Courl and

structures in a wood energy based civi lization.

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sa ys it takes one cord (4 x 4 x 8 feet) of wood to make 1 cubic yard of lime.

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Those of you downstream from l arge dams might be interested to know that Courland says the y are still undergoi ng the curing process, thus forest alling

corrosion. It will be int eresting for our descendants t o discover whether the trem endous wei ght of these dams will continue to put off t he rebars corrosion expansion.

Failing dams are a double t raged y, since el ect ricit y from h ydro -power will be especiall y val uable as one of the few (reli able) energy sources in the fut ure.

James Howard Kunstler writ es that surburbia will be seen as one of the greatest wast es of energy and resources in the future. It goes wa y be yond that. Our infrast ruct ure is one -third and one - half concrete. It s all a waste.

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A wastel and. There will be absurd amounts of concret e rubble what the hell are people in the fut ure going t o do with 300 billion tons of concrete? Build sheep fences?

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What is a Polystyrene Foam?

(wiseGEEK)

Pol yst yrene foam is produces from st yrene. It is light wei ght , moisture - resist ant m aterial with exceptional insulation properti es. This foam is remarkabl y buo yant because it is composed of more than 90 percent ai r.

Unlike disposable cups and pi cni c coole rs, whi ch are notabl y white i n color, products made from pol yst yrene foam are t ypi call y blue. It is used to m ake insul ation wrap for resi denti al hom es, comm ercial buildi ngs, and plumbing syst ems. It is also used in road construction as an insulation la yer under pavement to det er the form ation of cracks and potholes that occur from seasonal freezing and thawing of the soil beneath.

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In terms of envi ronmental impact and hazards t o human health, pol ys t yrene foam manufacturing is regarded by the U.S. Environment al Prot ection Agenc y as the fift h major producer of hazardous waste. Asi de from posing an occupational health risk due to exposure to st yrene duri ng processing, there are concerns over pol yst yrene foam production cont ribut ing to poor ai r qual it y. This is d ue to hydrocarbons escapi ng during m anufact uring and reacting with nitrogen oxides in the air, whi ch forms a pollut ant known as tropospheric ozone.

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In addition, m an y rec ycli ng companies will not accept products m ade from pol yst yrene foam l eft on the curb , presumabl y because the market for reclaiming this materi al is limited. For these and other reasons,

pol yst yrene foam i s banned in some regions, such as Portland, Oregon, and Orange Count y i n California.

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CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

MATERIALS REQ UIREME NT

Expanded pol ys t yrene can be acquired in Mega Packaging Corporati on, located in First Ave. Arturo Dri ve,

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Bagumba yan, Tagui g, Met ro Manila.

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RESEARCH DESIGN The stud y will be using an experim ental research desi gn. This is concerned wi th the anal ysis of data generat ed from an experiment. It is wise to t ake tim e and effort to organize the experiment properl y to ensure t hat the ri ght t ype of dat a, and enough of it, is avail able t o answer the questions of int erest as clearl y and effici ent l y as possible.

Precast R einforced Geofoam is com posed of

expandable pol yst yr ene as the core, reinforcing rebar and a concret e covering. The procedure of t he test is that b y using a rectangular molder we would pl ace the Expandabl e pol yst yrene at the cent er and pour in the concrete as covering. If the concrete has al read y reached its maximum strengt h it will be subj ect ed to the universal t esting machine to acquire t he compressive strength.

The concept of our desi gn is to prefabricate an

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Expanded Pol yst yrene or also k nown as geofoam that has rebars alread y embedded in the edges for rect angul ar foam.

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DESIGN O F FLOW CHART

EXPANDED POLYSTYRENE

CONCRETE COVER

REINFORCED EPS

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UNIVERSAL TESTING MACHINE

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FLAME TEST

CONCRETE COVERING

DATA AND ANALYSIS

SOURCE O F DATA

B y using t he universal testing m achi ne we then could acqui re for the fc and fv that we would use to check if our Reinforced Expanded Pol yst yrene is an adequat e

substitution for the t raditional pure concret e formul ation in the structural members, using formulas with respect to a structural member.

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Properti es Geofoam i s a flam mable m aterial so we would t est the e ffect of fire wit h respect to concrete convering Geofoam has a smooth flexible propert y so we would test on the bond behavior it has with concrete

Instru mentation an d data coll ection

Experi mentation

We would be testing the compressive strength ( ASTO D6817) of geofoam t o be used as basis in the experiment .

We would be t esting for Expanded Pol yst yrene with concret e covering of 40mm, 60mm, 80mm and 100mm to

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provide enough flame resistivit y of the Expanded Pol yst yrene and would provide addit ional compress ive strengt h to be adequate in the requi red strength of the members. We would be testing the fl ame resistivit y b y exposing the concret e covering in flames while the

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geofoam is inside for 3 hours then we will let it sit for a da y in room t emperature before we test it using the universal t esting m achine. We would also t est its bond behavior with concrete b y t esting its compressive st rengt h on a 40mm concrete covering i f the geofoam is deform ed and not deform ed.

Mix Proportions for bond behavior

Test on bonding of EPS to Con crete

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COVERING (mm) CURING DAYS PRO PERTY TESTS

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40 40

28 28

Deform ed Compressi ve Undeform ed strengt h

Mix Proportions for covering

Test on comp ressive strength

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COVERING (mm) CURING DAYS TESTS

40

40 60 80 100

28 28 28 28 Compressi ve strengt h

Mix Proportions for flame resistivi ty

Test on flame resistivity

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COVERING (mm) CURING DAYS FL AME TIME TESTS (hrs)

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40 60 80 100

28 28 28 28

3 3 3 3 Compressi ve strengt h

Docu mentation

We could calcul ate t he following structural m embers using thei r respecti ve formulas , b y using fc gathered from the test to see i f t he y are adequate substitution in the traditional concrete.

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BEAMS D=1.5b ; Use m a x m a x = 0.75[ W= M u = bd 2 f c w (1 -0.59w) A s = m a x bd ]

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SLAB

Min t = D= t c (main bar diameter)

M u = bd 2 f c w (1 -0.59w) A s = m a x bd

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