Evaluation of Mechanical Characteristics of Castor Oil Based Bio-Polymer Concretes for Ultra Thin Overlays

PURPOSES: The objective of this study is to evaluate the mechanical characteristics of castor oil based bio-polymer concrete for use of ultra thin overlays. METHODS: To evaluate the mechanical properties of bio-polymer concrete, the various laboratory tests including compressive, tensile, and flexural strength, and elongation tests were conducted on bio-polymer concrete specimens in this study. The mechanical characteristics of bio-polymer concretes were examined by changing the content of hardener and polymer binder to determine the optimum content for ultra-thin overlays. The bio-polymer concrete developed in this study was used for field trial test of the ultra-thin bridge deck pavement for verifying the workability and monitoring the long-term performance of materials. RESULTS: Test results showed that tensile and the flexural strength of bio-polymer concretes increase and the elongation of bio-polymer concrete decreases with increase of binder content. A field adhesive strength tests conducted on bridge deck pavement indicates the bio-polymer concrete has more than 2MPa of adhesive strength satisfy with the design criteria. CONCLUSIONS: The bio-polymer concrete with more than 20 % content of castor oil was developed for ultra-thin overlays in this study. I