Repair of subsurface micro-cracks in rock using resin pre-coating technique

Xiangyu Han, Bingyan Yuan, Bo Tan, Xiaozhi Hu, Shougen Chen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

23 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Subsurface micro-cracks in rock, detrimental to long-term structural integrity due to potential moisture or water penetration and stress concentration, should be carefully assessed and repaired in service. In this study, we propose a resin pre-coating (RPC) technique for sealing the sub-surface micro-cracks that normally cannot be accessed by adhesive bonding. The subsurface micro-cracks with narrow openings are penetrated by a specially prepared solution of resin (without hardener) and acetone through capillary action. After evaporation of acetone, the resin is left to fill the micro-cracks. The normal resin and hardener mixture is then applied. The diffusion process will grow the adhesive joint deep into those micro cracks leading to stronger adhesive bonding. Notched three-point-bending (3-p-b) granite specimens were first tested to fracture, and then bonded together using epoxy adhesive after RPC. Short Aramid fibers (SAF) were also used to strengthen the brittle epoxy adhesive joint. After removing potential premature failure sites by sealing those sub-surface micro-cracks, the peak loads of repaired samples were 35% higher than those measured from the original granite samples, and the total fracture energy consumption was 118% higher than the original value. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)485-491
Number of pages7
JournalConstruction and Building Materials
Volume196
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Jan 2019

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