Materials Today: Proceedings xxx (xxxx) xxx

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Materials Today: Proceedings

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Study of properties of polyethylene and cement mixtures

R. Elmrabet a,b,⇑, A. Elharfi b, M.S. Elyoubi a
a
Laboratory of Materials and Environmental Engineering: Modelisation and Applications, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, B.P133,
Kenitra 14000, Morocco
b
Laboratory of Agroressources, Polymers and Process Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, B.P133, Kenitra 14000, Morocco

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Polyethylene is used in a myriad of ways, from low molecular weight polyethylene (PE) being used as a
Received 14 February 2020 lubricant and mold release, to higher molecular weight grades being used for fiber, films, molding resins,
Received in revised form 7 March 2020 etc. According to the advantages of PE as stiffness, light weight plastic and having excellent chemical
Accepted 16 March 2020
resistance, polyethylene and cement mixtures can offer considerable benefits to product performance,
Available online xxxx
marketing aspects and differentiation of cement products. The objective of this investigation is to study
the influence of PE on the properties of cements. In this paper a portion of ordinary Portland cement OPC
Keywords:
was replaced by polyethylene powder, with four different rates (5%, 10%, 15% and 20%). Paste of each
Polyethylene
OPC
cement was prepared and analyzed for its setting time, expansion and strength. In this experimental
Polymer mortar study with 10% of PE the maximum strength is achieved for 28 days. Moreover, in order to benefit from
Thermal cycle thermoplastic and viscoelastic properties of PE, we exposed specimens of polymer mortar to a thermal
Strength cycle in a temperature ranging from 25 up to 130 °C. The results show some development of strength.
Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of The Third International
Conference on Materials and Environmental Science.

1. Introduction automotive, electrical, electronic and industrial applications. It is

The use of mineral or organic admixtures as partial replacement
for Portland cement in blended cements and concrete has become
almost unavoidable due to energy-saving concerns and other envi-
ronmental considerations [1]. So more than 3,8 billion tonnes of
cement is produced annually worldwide. One tonne of clinker
results in approximately 0,5 tonne of CO2 and requires about 3,3
GJ of energy [1,2]. Moreover, around 8% of global CO2 emissions
is due to cement manufacture and makes it the third most
polluting activity of mankind [2].
Researchers are more focused on the compressive and bending
strengths of a Polymer Cement PC. The optimum formulation of the
Polymer Cement depends of the homogeneity of polymer with
cement. At present, they are considered embryonic technologies
in need of further technological development. In fact, it is neces-
sary to validate the extrapolation of the laboratory results on an
industrial scale, before these innovative products may be consid-
ered real alternative treatments.
Polyethylene is the most common plastic. Its typical applica-
tions are containers, film, appliances, packaging, household goods,
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail address: rachid.el.mrabet@uit.ac.ma (R. Elmrabet).
resistant to concentrated acids, alkalis and many organic solvents
[3]. There are many different kinds of polyethylene, usually called
polythene, and abbreviated to PE. Its chemical formula is (C2H4)n,
and so it is a polymer of ethene, with a variable value of n, which
can be low or extremely high (over a million), producing solid
materials at room temperature, with various physical properties
[3].
Polyethylene is a lightweight, a viscoelastic and a thermoplastic
material, because if PE is heated steadily, it becomes soft and cap-
able of plastic deformation, before it melts. On cooling it becomes
hard again. The temperature at which this happens depends upon
the value of n, i.e. their average chain length [4].
The objective of this investigation is to study the influence of
adding polyethylene on the properties of cement. Moreover the
effect of thermal cycle on the mechanical strengths of the poly-
ethylene cements was tested.
2. Material and methods
Research of utilization of PE as a partial cement replacement in
ordinary Portland cement OPC was used on preparing of 4 experi-
mental mixtures by adding polyethylene up (5%, 10%, 15% and
20%). The four different cements were tested in pastes and mortars

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.03.475
2214-7853/Ó 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of The Third International Conference on Materials and Environmental Science.

Please cite this article as: R. Elmrabet, A. Elharfi and M. S. Elyoubi, Study of properties of polyethylene and cement mixtures, Materials Today: Proceedings,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.03.475
2 R. Elmrabet et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings xxx (xxxx) xxx

according to European Norm to determine their physical and Table 2

mechanical characteristics. Chemical composition of OPC used.

Polyethylene powder used has the chemical and physical prop- Constituents Content %
erties presented in Table 1. Ordinary Portland cement OPC used has SiO2 19,70
the chemical composition as determined in Table 2. Al2O3 5,34
Standard consistency and setting times of cements were deter- Fe2O3 3,26
mined using a Vicat apparatus according to the European standard CaO 60,31
MgO 3,06
EN 196–3. The expansion was measured according to the Le Chate- SO3 3,37
lier method. Compressive strength measurements were conducted K2O 1,24
at the ages of 2, 7, and 28 days on mortar specimens (dimensions f-CaO 2,48
40 mm  40 mm  160 mm) as shown in Fig. 1. They were pre-
pared and tested in accordance with the European standard EN
196-1.
After 28 days, the mortar specimens were exposed to the ther-
mal cycle: 25 °C to 70 °C for 1 h and 70 °C to 130 °C for 3 h. The
temperature stability over time for the cooling system is 10 °C/
min and for the heating system is 5 °C/min. The compressive tests
are immediately carried out after removing the specimens from
the chamber by the experimental procedure.

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Normal consistency

As presented in Fig. 2 for all blended cements the demand for

water to have the normal consistency of the cement paste
increased with the replacement percentages of the adjuvant PE.
It can then be assumed that cement grains of a combination incom-
patible with the adjuvant have their freedom of movement dimin-
ished and that their displacement relative to each other during a Fig. 1. Mortar specimens prepared to test mechanical strength.
flow is difficult due to forces friction. This incompatibility results
in significant water consumption for the formation of hydration
products [5–7].

3.2. Setting times

As shown in Fig. 3, the initial and final setting times were longer
by adding more and more PE adjuvant; this could be explained by
the fact that just after mixing, the cement and polymer particles
are dispersed, the hydration of the cement begins a part of the
polymer can coalesce to form a continuous film that partially or
totally envelops the cement grains. This overlay partially delays
the hydration of the cement [8,9].

3.3. Le Chatelier expansion

We noticed, as presented in Fig. 4, that the expansion decreased

with the increase of PE rate. However the soundness and expansion
tests are well correlated with the free lime (f-CaO) content of clin- Fig. 2. Effect of PE content on water demand WD.
ker. So free lime reacts with water, and releases a rapid increase of
volume (about 1,8 times) due to the formation of Ca(OH)2 which is
accompanied with an effective expansion. [10,11]. We thus

Table 1
Chemical and physical properties of PE used.

Requirements Polyethylene powder used

Composition [C2H4]n contains traces of antioxidants
Appearance Natural, slightly white powder
Particle size <500 m
Solubility Insoluble in water
Density 938 Kg/m3 (Solid)
Bulk density 0.37 g/cm3
Melting point 130 °C
Boiling point 300 °C
Tensile strength at yield 10 MPa
Flexural modulus 750 MPa Fig. 3. Effect of PE content on setting times.

Please cite this article as: R. Elmrabet, A. Elharfi and M. S. Elyoubi, Study of properties of polyethylene and cement mixtures, Materials Today: Proceedings,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.03.475
 R. Elmrabet et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings xxx (xxxx) xxx
conclude that contents of PE didn’t cause any expansive reaction at
all, but when the replacement percentages of the adjuvant PE
increased, the free lime decreased in blended cements which
caused less expansion.
Fig. 4. Effect of PE content on expansion.
Fig. 5. Effect of PE content on compressive strength.
Fig. 6. Effect of thermal cycle on compressive strength of blended cements.
Please cite this article as: R. Elmrabet, A. Elharfi and M. S. Elyoubi, Study of properties of polyethylene and cement mixtures, Materials Today: Proceedings,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.03.475
3
3.4. Compressive strength
According to the experimental results shown in Fig. 5, we note
that the polyethylene polymer particles coalesce to form a contin-
uous film that interpenetrates with cement minerals [12,13]. How-
ever the addition of up to 10% of the PE adjuvant gives the same
compressive strength at 28 days as the reference cement, but more
than 10% a drop in the compressive resistance was observed. This
is due to the bridging of micro-cracks by polymer [14,15].
3.5. Thermal cycle
As shown in Fig. 6, exposing to thermal cycle had no significant
influence on the strength of the reference cement, while compres-
sive strengths of the proposed formulation rise neatly as the tem-
perature increases.
This is due to the thermoplastic property of polyethylene which
changes significantly with the increase in temperature up to the
melting point. At this temperature, the polyethylene polymer par-
ticles coalesce to form a continuous film that interpenetrates with
cement minerals [16,17]. So PE forms a layer after the evaporation
of the water and the melting by coalescence of the particles of
polymer. The layer acts as an organic binder, to be adhered as ther-
moplastic with diverse substrates of mortar, and contributes to
development of the strengths also favours an excellent adhesion
to cement [18,19].
4. Conclusion
The laboratory investigation described in this paper focused on
the effects of polymer PE as an additive for cement. The analysis
was divided into two main phases: the first one was dedicated to
the evaluation of the effects of different dosages of polymer PE
on the corresponding mixtures by using physical and mechanical
characteristics tests. The second one aimed at evaluating the
effects of thermal cycle on polymer mortar by increasing tempera-
ture environments in order to benefit from its total potential in
strength.
Based on the results reported in this paper, the following
conclusions can be drawn:
4 R. Elmrabet et al. / Materials Today: Proceedings xxx (xxxx) xxx
- The addition of up to 10% of the PE adjuvant gives the same
compressive strength at 28 days as the reference cement, but
more than 10% a drop in the compressive strength was
observed.
- Exposing to thermal cycle, the reference cement (without poly-
mers) specimens look their stress quite similar after thermal
cycle. Increasing the temperature does not result in this yield
point because the mobility of dislocations is already compro-
mised to begin with.
- The thermoplastic and viscoelastic properties of PE which sig-
nificantly appear with increasing the temperature up to the
melting point, thus, PE guaranteed same benefits in strength.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing finan-
cial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared
to influence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the personnel of quality control
department of Lafarge-Holcim Oujda-Morocco for the technical
assistance.
Please cite this article as: R. Elmrabet, A. Elharfi and M. S. Elyoubi, Study of properties of polyethylene and cement mixtures, Materials Today: Proceedings,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2020.03.475
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