Published online by Cambridge University Press: 21 February 2011
Polymer-modified cement concrete represents a heterogeneous material whose properties are influenced more by the properties of the polymers than by the properties of the cement component. Typical of polymeric materials are their temperature dependent behavior. This temperature dependence can be related to the glass transition temperature of the polymer. In cases where the temperature is higher than the glass transition temperature, strength decreases while deformability simultaneously increases. Polymeric films are formed in the dispersed polymer systems as a result of reactions occurring at the glass transition temperature. A styrene/acrylic modified concrete was studied at different polymer loadings. The tensile and compressive strengths of this system were studied as a function of temperature. Increasing deformability temperatures principally at higher polymer loadings near the glass transition temperature and decreasing strength occurred.