Mechanical properties of geopolymer composite foams reinforced with carbon nanofibers via modified hydrogen peroxide method

• Published in: Materials chemistry and physics 2020-10, Vol.253, p.123258, Article 123258
• Main Authors: Yan, Shu, Zhang, Fanyong, Kong, Jian, Wang, Bo, Li, Haochen, Yang, Yaxin, Xing, Pengfei
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amorphous materials; Carbon fibers; Carbon nanofiber; Cellular; Compressive strength; Crack bridging; Crack propagation; Foaming agents; Foams; Geopolymer foam; Geopolymers; Hydrogen peroxide; Mechanical properties; Nanofibers; Pore size; Porosity; Reagents
• ISSN: 0254-0584; 1879-3312
• DOI: 10.1016/j.matchemphys.2020.123258

A new lightweight hybrid geopolymer foam reinforced with carbon nanofibers (CNFs) is synthesized via hydrogen peroxide method. The synergistic effects of CNFs addition and foaming agent on the phase, pore structure and mechanical properties were investigated. The CNFs/KGP materials show typical amorphous phase with addition of nanofibers. Porosity of the composite foams increased with the H2O2 ratio and decreased with the increase of CNTs. With 3 wt% CNFs, the average pore size of CNFs/KGP samples is ~328 μm. Compression strength of the CNFs/KGP samples increased with the increasing content of CNFs (up to 2 wt%), which was attributed to crack bridging and propagation. This CNFs/KGP foams may find applications in filtration and membrane supports applications in the future. •A novel CNFs/KGP foam was achieved by modified hydrogen peroxide method.•The CNFs/KGP foams were typical amorphous.•Compression strength was improved by crack bridging and propagation of CNFs.