Toughened Unsaturated Polyester Composites Reinforced with Slag Material

Slag powder, which is a by-product during the steel making process, has been utilized in this study. It was comminuted followed by stearic acid treatment. The mineralogical composition of the unmodified and modified slag was inspected using energy dispersive spectrophotometer. The effectiveness of the stearic acid treatment was followed by attenuated total reflectance infrared spectroscopy. The potential of unmodified and modified slag as reinforcement for unsaturated polyester mixed with solution of nitrile butadiene rubber to produce toughened polyester was evaluated. The toughened polyester has been fabricated by casting technique from solution state. The impact of unmodified and modified slag on the mechanical and thermal characteristics of the composites was inspected. The fire resistance of the composite was evaluated by exposing the composites to direct open flame. The fracture surfaces of the impacted samples were viewed under scanning electron microscope. This was done to obtain an idea on the dispersion pattern and the quality of bonding between the slag and the matrix. [GRAPHICS] .