Investigation of the effect of electric cure application on the properties of carbon, steel and waste wire fibers activated with alkali composites

In this thesis, the development of hybrid (Fly Ash (FA) and Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBFS)) alkali-activated mortars/composites was discussed with the aim of providing sustainable alternatives to traditional concrete by using different curing methods. Mixtures used in the production of alkali-activated mortars were prepared in different ratios as 100GBFS, 25FA + 75GBFS, 50FA + 50GBFS, 75FA + 25GBFS and 100FA. In the activation process, it was aimed to improve the mechanical properties by using chemical activators such as Na₂SiO₃ + NaOH (6, 8, 10, 12 and 14M). For this purpose, the effects of different curing processes on the mortars were investigated by applying electrical curing (10V, 20V, 30V), thermal curing (80°C, 24 hours) and air curing (23±2°C, 95% humidity) methods among the curing methods. In this context, physical, mechanical and microstructural tests were carried out on the samples. The results showed that the compressive strength at 20V was found to be 78.2 MPa in the series with 0.5% waste wire erosion (WWE) additive and the flexural strength in the same series was determined as 16 MPa. In the tests carried out in cold weather conditions (-20°C), the highest compressive strength was determined in the series with 0.5% carbon fiber (CF) additive (30.58 MPa), the void ratio was measured as 0.0547 cc/g and the water absorption rate remained at a low level compared to the other series in the capillarity tests. In other durability tests, in freeze-thaw tests, 5% mass loss was observed in the series with 0.5% steel fiber (SF) addition, while this loss was 12% in the control series. In high temperature tests, in the series with 0.5% KF addition, the strength increased by 10% at 200°C and reached 34.14 MPa, but decreased by 38% and 64% at 600°C and 800°C, respectively, and decreased to 15.7 MPa. In drying shrinkage tests, water loss decreased by 25% in the series with 2% carbon black (CB) addition, and shrinkage increased from 40 microstrain at the beginning to 112 microstrain.