Fabrication of polycarboxylate/graphene oxide nanosheet composites by copolymerization for reinforcing and toughening cement composites

Polycarboxylate (PC)/graphene oxide nanosheet (GON) composites are prepared by copolymerization of graphene oxide nanosheets (GONs) and PC's monomers of methacrylic acid, sodium allyl sulfonate and methacrylate polyoxyethylene ether. The test results indicate that GONs in the PC/GON copolymeric composites have smaller size and uniformly dispersed. Using of PC/GON composites in cement paste can achieve uniformly disperse GONs and eliminate the effects of GONs on the cement paste fluidity. The GONs from the composites can regulate the cement hydration products to form ordered microstructure and have significantly reinforcing and toughening effects. Meanwhile, the results research indicate that GONs have self-repairing effects for the holes and cracks for cement composites. The results have a very positive to application of GONs for improving the strength/toughness and extensing the service life of cement composites. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.