Mechanical compressive behavior of composite materials from a matrix of rigid polyurethane

Abstract

Rigid polyurethane foam is a material that shows an excellent relationship between compressive strength and density. Besides, it can be mixed on-site, changing rapidly from liquid to solid, interesting characteristics that can be exploited in the construction of structural fills. This work studies the compressive behavior of composite materials in a matrix of rigid polyurethane in which segments of materials like Guadua angustifolia and rubber tire chips are embedded. Initially, different mixtures were designed, varying the content of each of the materials. Samples for each mixture were constructed to determine their resistance to simple compression and confined compression. Finally, the filler’s contribution to the resistance to radial compression was observed in cylindrical PVC elements. It was found that the addition of particulate Guadua to the polyurethane matrix allows to obtain a filler with higher resistance to compression than the matrix, which reduces by 95% the amount of polymer needed to obtain the same volume