Analyzing the Effects of Nano-Titanium Dioxide and Nano-Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles on the Mechanical and Durability Properties of Self-Cleaning Concrete

Fatma El-Zahraa M Mostafa; Piotr Smarzewski; Ghada M Abd El Hafez; Ahmed A Farghali; Wafaa M Morsi; Ahmed S Faried; Taher A Tawfik

doi:10.3390/ma16216909

Analyzing the Effects of Nano-Titanium Dioxide and Nano-Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles on the Mechanical and Durability Properties of Self-Cleaning Concrete

Materials (Basel). 2023 Oct 27;16(21):6909. doi: 10.3390/ma16216909.

Authors

Fatma El-Zahraa M Mostafa¹, Piotr Smarzewski², Ghada M Abd El Hafez³, Ahmed A Farghali⁴, Wafaa M Morsi⁵, Ahmed S Faried¹, Taher A Tawfik^{6

7}

Affiliations

¹ Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Fayoum University, Fayoum 2933110, Egypt.
² Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geodesy, Military University of Technology, 2 gen. Sylwestra Kaliskiego, 00-908 Warsaw, Poland.
³ Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Fayoum University, Fayoum 2933110, Egypt.
⁴ Materials Science and Nanotechnology Department, Faculty of Postgraduate Studies for Advanced Sciences, Beni-Suef University, Beni Suef 2722165, Egypt.
⁵ Building Physics Research Institute, Housing & Building National Research Center (HBRC), Cairo 11511, Egypt.
⁶ Department of Construction and Building Engineering, High Institute of Engineering, 6th October City 3226010, Egypt.
⁷ Institute of Construction and Architecture, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská Cesta 9, SK-845 03 Bratislava, Slovakia.

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to investigate the impact of nano-materials on the mechanical and electrochemical properties of self-cleaning concrete. Nano-titanium dioxide and nano-zinc oxide were used as additives for this purpose. Additionally, a comparative study on the effect of using these materials on the self-cleaning concrete's characteristics was conducted. The dosages of nano-titanium dioxide (nps-TiO₂) and nano-zinc oxide (nps-ZnO) used were 0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5% and 0, 1, 2, and 3% of the weight of the cement, respectively. The results showed that the optimum compressive strength and the lowest corrosion rate were fulfilled at 2.5% of nps-TiO₂ and 1% of nps-ZnO, and using 2.5% of nps-TiO₂ achieved the highest improvement in the corrosion rate. However, 1% for nps-TiO₂ mixtures and 1% for nps-ZnO mixtures were the best ratios for flexural strength. On the other hand, for the corrosion rate, the samples were tested at 2 and 6 months. When nps-TiO₂ and nps-ZnO samples were compared to the control sample, 2.5% and 1% of nps-TiO₂ and nps-ZnO, respectively, showed the largest improvement in resistance to corrosion. Also, the self-cleaning property of the samples containing nano-materials (nps-TiO₂ and nps-ZnO) was tested. As the results illustrated, the self-cleaning property of the samples was increased over time due to photocatalytic degradation. Furthermore, the results of the photocatalytic tests showed that nps-TiO₂ samples outperformed nps-ZnO samples overall.

Keywords: corrosion rate; mechanical properties; nano-titanium dioxide; nano-zinc oxide; photocatalytic tests; self-cleaning concrete.

Grants and funding

The publication fee was supported by the Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geodesy of the Military University of Technology in the framework of the internal grant No. UGB 814/2023.