Flexibility, stretchability, and flame retardancy are of ever increasing importance in constructing grouting materials. Herein, a simple and effective strategy to make organic-inorganic composite grouting material in a “flexible, stretchable, and flame retardant” way was based on the excellent synergistic interactions among polyurethane prepolymer, red mud, polyethylene glycol, and trimethylolpropane. The resultant polyurethane/red mud composite grouting material with three-dimensional network structure presented a favorable flexibility, desirable compressive strength of 29.2 MPa at 50% compression state, and a good elongation at 15.1%. The grouting material was mainly composed of amorphous polyurethane and crystalline red mud, and its probable formation mechanism was reaction of prepolymer with H2O, polyethylene glycol and trimethylolpropane under vigorous stirring in the presence of catalyst. Furthermore, the grouting material possessed favorable thermal stability, flame retardancy and repairment performance for roadway cracks. This work may open a simple and convenient avenue for the massive engineering application of red mud and preparation of flexible organic-inorganic hybrid grouting material.
Polyurethane-based organic-inorganic hybrid composite is attracting increasing attention due to its excellent performance and low cost. Herein, a facile and effective strategy has been proposed for the fabrication of polyurethane/red mud hybrid composite by anchoring red mud particles into a polyurethane frame. The resulting hybrid composite was mainly composed of amorphous polyurethane and crystalline red mud, and its probable formation mechanism was proposed. The polyurethane/ red mud composite with micron particles uniformly embedded into the organic phase exhibited satisfactory mechanical performance, and its compressive and flexural strength could come up to 38.6 and 12.4 MPa after complete curing, respectively. Moreover, the hybrid composite displayed impressive thermal stability, flame retardancy, storage stability, and reinforcement performance. The obtained polyurethane/red mud composite shows potential applications in multiple fields (roadway, dam, underground engineering, etc.). POLYM. COMPOS., 40:2424-2431, 2019
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