Flexural Behavior of Structural Foam Concrete with Hollow Polymer Spherical Fillers Under Thermal and Mechanical Loading: Numerical and Experimental Analysis
5 affiliations
- 1Department of Transport Systems, Faculty of Roads and Transport Systems, Don State Technical University, 344003 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
- 2Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics, Agribusiness Faculty, Don State Technical University, Gagarin Square, 344003 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
- 3Department of Design, Don State Technical University, 344003 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
- 4Department of Unique Buildings and Constructions Engineering, Don State Technical University, 344003 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
- 5Department of Engineering Geometry and Computer Graphics, Don State Technical University, 344003 Rostov-on-Don, Russia
Abstract
Creating low-density composite materials that can handle significant temperature changes and bending stress is a promising approach for building floating platforms. This study creates a numerical model and conducts an experimental analysis of foam concrete containing polymer spheres with different diameters and properties. Laboratory bending tests were performed on manufactured foam concrete samples containing 10 mm, 12 mm, 15 mm, 19.05 mm, and 20 mm diameter polypropylene spheres. To predict the thermophysical properties of a composite featuring structural foam concrete with embedded polymer spheres, a numerical model was developed in the Material Designer module as the first step. The resulting density, thermal conductivity, and specific heat dependences were used as input for subsequent numerical analysis in ANSYS under nonuniform temperature and bending loading, based on the nonlinear Menetrey–Willam model. By comparing load–displacement curves for different sphere sizes, the accuracy of the model in forecasting strength and deformation properties was established. The study revealed that the maximum equivalent von Mises stress was 3.3 MPa, indicating that the material operates in the elastic zone, but close to crack formation. The maximum displacement due to temperature differences was 0.087 mm, and the tensile stress in the longitudinal direction was σX = 0.18 MPa. This indicates that the composite performs satisfactorily under temperature differences from +4 °C to −60 °C. Patterns of failure of structural foam concrete specimens with polymer spheres under bending were analyzed, demonstrating that cracking starts in the lower chord of the tensile zone, weakened by the presence of the spheres.
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BibTeX
@article{beskopylny2026flexural,
title = {{Flexural Behavior of Structural Foam Concrete with Hollow Polymer Spherical Fillers Under Thermal and Mechanical Loading: Numerical and Experimental Analysis}},
author = {Alexey N. Beskopylny and Ivan Panfilov and Diana M. Shakhalieva and Natalya Shcherban’ and Sergey A. Stel’makh and Evgenii M. Shcherban’ and Andrei Chernil’nik},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/polym18202580},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2580},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Flexural Behavior of Structural Foam Concrete with Hollow Polymer Spherical Fillers Under Thermal and Mechanical Loading: Numerical and Experimental Analysis
AU - Alexey N. Beskopylny
AU - Ivan Panfilov
AU - Diana M. Shakhalieva
AU - Natalya Shcherban’
AU - Sergey A. Stel’makh
AU - Evgenii M. Shcherban’
AU - Andrei Chernil’nik
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Polymers
DO - 10.3390/polym18202580
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2580
AB - Creating low-density composite materials that can handle significant temperature changes and bending stress is a promising approach for building floating platforms. This study creates a numerical model and conducts an experimental analysis of foam concrete containing polymer spheres with different diameters and properties. Laboratory bending tests were performed on manufactured foam concrete samples containing 10 mm, 12 mm, 15 mm, 19.05 mm, and 20 mm diameter polypropylene spheres. To predict the thermophysical properties of a composite featuring structural foam concrete with embedded polymer spheres, a numerical model was developed in the Material Designer module as the first step. The resulting density, thermal conductivity, and specific heat dependences were used as input for subsequent numerical analysis in ANSYS under nonuniform temperature and bending loading, based on the nonlinear Menetrey–Willam model. By comparing load–displacement curves for different sphere sizes, the accuracy of the model in forecasting strength and deformation properties was established. The study revealed that the maximum equivalent von Mises stress was 3.3 MPa, indicating that the material operates in the elastic zone, but close to crack formation. The maximum displacement due to temperature differences was 0.087 mm, and the tensile stress in the longitudinal direction was σX = 0.18 MPa. This indicates that the composite performs satisfactorily under temperature differences from +4 °C to −60 °C. Patterns of failure of structural foam concrete specimens with polymer spheres under bending were analyzed, demonstrating that cracking starts in the lower chord of the tensile zone, weakened by the presence of the spheres.
SN - 2073-4360
ER -