Using the developed methodology, various shapes and cross-sections have been developed with potential for the new structural systems. These include rectangular tubes, sandwich panels with lightweight aggregate core, W sections, channels, and angles, thin panels, honeycomb elements, and pipes. Other applications include The primary component of this new construction technology is the development of a family of cement products as thin elements (about 10 mm thickness), which can then be formed into wall panels; structural shapes, exterior siding; roofing tiles; truss elements, and pressure pipes.
The main advantage of fabrics as reinforcements in cement-based composites is the enhancement of mechanical behavior, especially when low modulus low-cost yarns are used. In addition, modern textile technology offers a wide variety of fabrics with great flexibility in fabric design and control of yarn geometry and orientation. This flexibility allows the engineering of composite performance for various cement products. Practical use of textile-cement composites requires an industrial cost-effective production process. The pultrusion process is a natural candidate for this purpose, as it is based on a relatively simple set up using low-cost equipment while assuring uniform production and good control of laminate alignment. In this process, continuous reinforcements are impregnated in the fresh matrix and then pulled through a set of rotating cylinders, which apply pressure, remove the excess matrix, and form fabric composite laminates. It has been demonstrated in numerous circumstances that the production method can have a substantial impact on the properties of the final product, hence our effort is to understand and control these parameters for optimum materials development.
The challenges of this research are: 1) development of pultrusion processing techniques for textile reinforced cement composites, 2) development of cement mixtures with appropriate rheology for the pultrusion process, and optimal mechanical performance, 3) optimization of textile materials and structure for various product requirements, and 4) development of a series of typical products that can be implemented and used in the current building technology, Rehabilitation, and durability and seismic strengthening. The promising combination of fabric reinforcement in cement composite products and the pultrusion process is expected to lead to an effective novel technique to produce a new class of high-performance textile-cement composite materials. Such a breakthrough may open the way for a multitude of new products and applications.