• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.249-256
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• 2020

Superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) can absorb and retain ten to thousand times their dry mass of water because of their three-dimensional hydrophilic structures. Conventional SAPs are mainly composed of poly(acrylic acid sodium salt) derived from petrochemicals. The present work is aimed at limiting the use of the petrochemical component by replacing it with a biomass-based material. First, the core-SAP was prepared via the terpolymerization of itaconic acid, vinylsulfonic acid, and cellulose, and the optimum conditions in terms of material input ratio were determined. Following this, the core-SAP was surface-crosslinked by esterification with butane diol to improve its liquid permeability and absorbency under load (AUL). The liquid permeability was measured according to the amount of 0.9 wt.% NaCl solution passing between the swollen SAP particles under a given pressure, and the AUL was estimated from the weight of this solution absorbed under 0.3 psi pressure.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.86-94
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• 2020

When the Superabsorbent Polymer (SAP) is added into concrete, the slump decreases rapidly, deteriorating the workability, the internal curing effect can be obtained through the water absorption and discharge process, and the internal voids of the concrete are increased. In this study, the effects of internal curing and voids were evaluated by evaluating the compressive strength, freeze-thaw resistance, and chloride penetration resistance of SAP-adding concrete that secured workability using a water reducing agent. Also, the internal curing effect of SAP was evaluated by dividing the curing conditions of concrete into water curing and sealed curing. From the result, as the SAP adding ratio increased, the amount of water reducing agent increased, and as for the compressive strength, the SAP adding ratio of 1.5% showed the greatest compressive strength. In particular, in the case of sealed curing showed higher compressive strength than the water curing. It is considered that the compressive strength increased due to the reduction of the effective water-cement ratio and the internal curing effect. Adding 1.0~1.5% of SAP improved the freeze-thaw resistance similar to the case of adding the AE agent, and the addition of more than 1.0% of SAP improved the chloride penetration resistance. The optimal adding ratio of SAP is 1.5%, and the adding ratio of 2.0% or more adversely affects the compressive strength and freeze-thaw resistance.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2023.05a
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• pp.311-312
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• 2023

In this study, porous concrete with improved functionality was developed by using superabsorbent polymer (SAP) to provide rooting space for plants. The depth of settlement and mass change according to the substitution and addition rate of SAP were determined by investigating the functional performance of SAP and the volume change upon saturation. Test results indicated the depth of penetration settlement increased as the substitution rate of SAP increased, but the mass change could not be confirmed as the addition rate of SAP increased. The instability of the specimens due to the excessive volume change of SAP, as well as the osmotic pressure phenomenon according to the pH concentration, were identified as the cause. Therefore, future studies are needed to investigate the appropriate substitution and addition rate of SAP, as well as to reduce the osmotic pressure phenomenon according to the pH concentration, which would contribute to the improvement of the functional performance of vegetation concrete.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.88-96
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• 2020

In this study, the effect of cyclic wetting-drying on the self-healing of cementitious materials containing superabsorbent polymers (SAPs) were experimentally evaluated. In each cycle, cracked cement paste specimens containing various SAP dosages were exposed to wet conditions for 1 h, during which the capillary water absorption tests and water flow tests were conducted, and then exposed to dry conditions for 47 h. The capillary water absorption test results showed that the sorptivity values of the specimen without SAPs, SAP 0.5%, SAP 1.0%, and SAP 1.5% specimens were decreased by approximately 22.9%, 36.8%, 42.8%, and 46.3%, respectively, after 8 cycles. In addition, the water flow test results showed that the amount of water runoff through the cracks of all cracked specimens gradually decreased over wet/dry cycles, especially the reduction ratio of the amount of water runoff increased with increasing SAP dosage. Furthermore, the swelling behavior of SAPs in cracks by in gress water was con firmed via X-ray computed tomography (CT) analysis. These results indicate that the effective crack width can be reduced as SAPs absorb water and swell, while the water absorbed in SAPs can be released to crack surfaces under dry conditions, further promoting healing product formation. This study demon strates that the in corporation of SAPs can in crease the water tightness of cracks, thereby improving the self-healing efficiency of cementitious materials.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.50-59
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• 2020

Superabsorbent Polymer (SAP) expands inside concrete by absorbing water and contracts as it discharges water. Through this process, concrete can achieve the internal curing effect, but the space occupied by the expanded SAP remains as a void. In this study, the effects of SAP internal curing and voids were evaluated by evaluating the fundamental properties and chloride penetration resistance of SAP mixed concrete. Also, to evaluate the internal curing effect by SAP, the tests were carried out under water and sealed curing conditions, respectively. From the result, the compressive strength of water curing did not differ significantly according to the mixing ratio of SAP. In the case of sealed curing, however, the compressive strength tended to increase as the mixing ratio of SAP increased. The internal curing effect of sealed curing was considered to have influenced the increase in compressive strength. In the case of the chloride diffusion coefficient, the diffusion coefficient tended to decrease as the mixing ratio of SAP increased. In particular, as the sealed curing is applied, the chloride penetration resistance is further improved due to internal curing effect. If the curing conditions are different, it is considered inappropriate to estimate the chloride penetration resistance by the surface electrical resistivity.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF PACKAGING SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.35-40
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• 2021

Calcium hydroxide (CH) reacts with CO2 to produce moisture, and sodium carbonate (SC) reacts with CO2 in the presence of moisture. Using these different characteristics of these two reactants, a CH/SC mixture of CO2 absorber tuned for kimchi ripening to produce CO2 in a flexible package was selected. A ratio of CH:SC (1:2) in highly gas permeable microporous spunbonded film (Tyvek) sachet was found to be appropriate for delayed and consistent CO2 absorption useful for kimchi package. Addition of superabsorbent polymer (SAP) as moisture buffer was helpful for boosting the consistency of CO2 absorption. In a package of 0.5 kg kimchi at 10℃, the sachet consisting of 0.794 g of CH + 2.276 g of SC + 0.4 g of SAP suppressed its volume expansion and maintained a suitable range of CO2 partial pressure (PCO2) steadily inside. These optimal conditions may vary depending on the type and salinity of kimchi, storage and distribution temperature, and the material and area of the absorber sachet. This study showed a potential of mixture CO2 absorber to be tuned for CO2 producing packaged kimchi for the purpose of keeping consistent PCO2 at tolerable volume expansion.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.314-320
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• 2020

This study focused on experiments with polyethylene glycol (PEG) and glycidyl methacrylate (GMA), which are functional additives for water-expandable rubber. Polychloroprene rubber (CR)/superabsorbent polymer (SAP) composites were prepared and their cure behaviors, mechanical properties, water absorption rates, and surface morphology were measured based on the functional additives applied. When PEG and GMA were applied to the composites, the water absorption rate increased-including the initial rate-compared to that measured when functional additives were not used. The results also show that PEG has a hydrophilic functional group, which allows it to absorb more water, and GMA acts as a coupling agent between CR and SAP. However, with the introduction of functional additives, the cure rate slowed down and the mechanical properties also decreased.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.136-144
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• 1996

Polyacrylic super absorbent polymer(SAP) containing sorbitol was synthesized by inverse-suspension polymerization method. Sodium acrylate and acrylic acid were used as a monomer, ethylene glycol dimethacrylate(EGDMA) and glycerol polyglycidyl ether(GPGE) were used as a crosslinking agent, potassium persulfate(PPS) was used as an initiator, and cyclohexane was used as a solvent. Content of sorbitol was from 10mol% to 50mol% according to the mol ratio of acrylic acid monomer. The size distribution of the round shaped polymeric particle was $177{\sim}707{\mu}m$. Absorption amount of the polymer containing sorbitol was 785 to 1086 times of the polymer weight in distilled water, was 50 to 83 times in 0.9 % NaCl solution. Absorption and retention amount of the polymer were decreased with increasing the amount of sorbitol, but the polymer has an endothermic property which is +5 cal/g SAP.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.20-29
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• 2016

This study investigates the effect of the absorbent materials on the material properties(compressive strength and drying shrinkage) of natural hwangtoh mortar which is one of the traditional building material in Korea. The absorbent materials used are seaweed paste and Super-Absorbent Polymer(SAP). In addition to the absorbent materials, the initial sealed curing recommended by the standard specification of properties for Korean traditional building materials is also a main interest of this study. Based on the test results of 28 days compressive strength and converged drying shrinkage, it is confirmed that the initial sealed curing for 7 days is effective to reduce the drying shrinkage and to enhance the compressive strength. Thus, it is verified that the recommendation is reasonable and has positive effects on the properties of the mortar. Next, the test results show that the addition of absorbent materials into the mortar is also effective to the two properties depending on their absorption capacity. Thus, it is more effective to use SAP than the seaweed paste because of higher absorption capacity. However, both the initial sealed curing and keeping total water contents of the mortar are required to show this effectiveness. Lastly, the compressive strength is inversely proportional to the drying shrinkage. By using this relation, the reason of the increase of compressive strength due to the initial sealed curing or the addition of absorbent materials is quantitatively explained.