Latex-modified

Three generations of latices as characterized by the type of surfactant used in manufacture have been defined (53). The first generation includes latices made with conventional (/) anionic surfactants like fatty acid soaps, alkyl carboxylates, alkyl sulfates, and alkyl sulfonates (54) (2) nonionic surfactants like poly(ethylene oxide) or poly(vinyl alcohol) used to improve freeze—thaw and shear stabiUty and (J) cationic surfactants like amines, nitriles, and other nitrogen bases, rarely used because of incompatibiUty problems. Portiand cement latex modifiers are one example where cationic surfactants are used. Anionic surfactants yield smaller particles than nonionic surfactants (55). Often a combination of anionic surfactants or anionic and nonionic surfactants are used to provide improved stabiUty. The stabilizing abiUty of anionic fatty acid soaps diminishes at lower pH as the soaps revert to their acids. First-generation latices also suffer from the presence of soap on the polymer particles at the end of the polymerization. Steam and vacuum stripping methods are often used to remove the soap and unreacted monomer from the final product (56). 

Of the several types of the polymer-modified mortars and concretes used for various construction applications, latex-modified mortar and concrete are by far the most widely used materials. Latex-modified mortar and concrete are prepared by mixing a latex, either in a dispersed liquid or as a redispersible powder form with fresh cement mortar and concrete mixtures. The polymers are usually added to the mixing water just as other chemical admixtures, at a dosage of 5-20% by weight of cement. Polymer latexes are stable dispersions of very small (0.05-5 pm in diameter) polymer particles in water and are produced by emulsion polymerization. Natural rubber latex and epoxy latex are exceptions in that the former is tapped from rubber trees and the latter is produced by emulsifying an epoxy resin in water by the use of surfactants [87]. 

Cement hydration and epoxy polymerization occur simultaneously to form a structure that is similar to the latex-modified cementitious system. Epoxy systems develop high strength, adhesion and have low permeability, good water resistance and chemical resistance. A major advantage of this system is that it can be cured under moist or wet conditions. According to a recent study, the epoxy-modified mortars can be made without the hardeners with superior properties to those obtained with conventional epoxy mortars [89, 90]. 

The properties of a latex depend on the nature of polymers in the latex, particularly the monomer ratio in copolymers and the type and amount of plasticizers. The monomer ratio affects the strengths of the latex modified mortars to the same extent as the polymer-cement ratio [87, 92]. Mechanical and chemical stability, bubbling and coalescence on drying all depend on the type and amount of surfactants and antifoamers and the size of dispersed polymer particles. It is important that the use of selected antifoamers and surfactants as stabilizers or emulsifiers produces no adverse effect on cement hydration. 

Table 6.11 Effect of glass transition temperature Tg on the properties of acrylic-latex-modified mortar (Ma and Brown)...

Such effects increase with an increase in the polymer content or the polymer-cement ratio (the weight ratio of total solids in a polymer latex to the amount of cement in a latex-modified mortar or concrete mixture). However, at levels exceeding 20% by weight of the cement in the mixture, excessive air entrainment and discontinuities form in the monolithic network structure, resulting in a reduction of compressive strength and modulus [87, 94, 95]. 

Although the mix design of latex-modified mortar and concrete is done in much the same way as that of ordinary mortar and concrete, properties such as workability, strength, extendibihty, adhesion, watertightness and chemical resistance are controlled by the polymer-cement ratio rather... 

Wet curing conditions such as water immersion or moist curing applicable to ordinary cement mortar and concrete is detrimental to latex-modified mortar and concrete. Optimum strengths are obtained by providing a... 

Most latex-modified mortars and concretes have good adhesion to most substrates (tile, stone, brick, steel and aged concrete) compared to conventional mortar and concrete. In general, bond strength in tension and flexure increases with an increase in the polymer-cement ratio,... 

In general, at low latex dosage levels, the creep strain and creep coefficient of latex modified concrete and mortar are considerably smaller than those of ordinary cement cement, mortar and concrete [94, 98]. The low creep is probably due to the low polymer content which may not affect the elasticity, but increases the strength by improving the binding capacity of the matrix as well as providing better hydration through water retention in the mortar and concrete. The coefficient of thermal expansion at about 9-10 x 10 is very similar to that of concrete, which is 10 x 10 6 [87, 94, 99]. 

Fig. 6.16 Carbonation depth of latex-modified mortars after 10-year outdoor and indoor exposure (Soroushian and TIili [91]).

Latex-modified mortars and concretes have become promising materials for preventing chloride-induced corrosion and for repairing damaged reinforced concrete structures. In Japan and the USA, latex-modified mortar is widely used as a construction material in bridge deck overlays and patching compounds, and for finishing and repairs [99]. Polymer-cement hydrate-... 

Fig. 6.17 Number of cycles of freezing and thawing vs relative dynamic modulus of elasticity of latex-modified mortars (Ohama [87]).

The molecular weight, glass transition temperature (T) and size of dispersed polymer particles in the latexes can affect the strength and c loride ion permeability of latex-modified mortar and concrete to a certain extent [87,93] (Tables 6.11 and 6.12). SBR latexes with smaller particle size appear to initially provide lower chloride ion permeability to the mortars, but a difference in the permeability between the smaller and larger particle sizes eventually becomes insignificant as the concrete ages. The initial decrease in the permeability observed with smaller particles is attributed to the fact that smaller particle size coalesce into films faster than the larger particle sizes. 

Generally, modification is made by adding approximately a 15% level of acrylic latex. Modified asphalt displays improved properties. Acrylic-modified asphalts are used for parking lots, driveways, low-voliune off-highway streets and highway shoulders. 

Lavelle, J.A. (1983) Acrylic latex modified portland cement, ACI Material Journal, 85(1), 41-8. 

Lavelle, J.A. (1986) Acrylic latex modified portland cement, paper presented at the American Concrete Institute, Baltimore, MD published by Rohm Haas, Philadelphia, PA. Panek, J.R. and Cook, J.P. (1984) Construction Sealants and Adhesives, John Wiley, New York, pp. 138-43. 

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