Use of Polymers in Concrete Technology

Abstract

The technology of composite materials has spread for the past two decades to concrete, one of the most common structural materials. A concrete-polymer composite combines the advantages of both materials to produce properties superior to either single component [1–20]. Traditional construction material, namely portland cement concrete, suffers from serious drawbacks of little or no resistance to chemical attack; rapid freeze–thaw deterioration; low tensile, shear, and bond strengths; and inherent microstructural problems such as air voids and shrinkage cracks [12, 17, 21].