Feasibility of Using Biochar as an Eco-Friendly Microfiller in Polymer Concretes

The circular economy includes, among other things, the use of waste materials. One such material is biochar, which should not be used as a fuel because its combustion generates large amounts of air pollution. This study evaluates the feasibility of using biochar as a partial filler in a polymer concrete. The components of the polymer concretes used in this study were vinyl-ester resin, traditional microfiller-quartz powder, waste microfiller-biochar and quartz aggregate with grain sizes up to 2 mm. The quartz aggregate was dosed at a constant rate of 1458 kg/m³ of concrete, whereas the dosage of resin and microfiller was formulated according to the experimental plan for mixtures and executed based on the volume of the remaining space: resin (65-85%), quartz powder (5-35%) and biochar (0-10%). The effects on the setting process, the consistency of the fresh composite mix and the flexural and compressive strengths were investigated. The study revealed significant deterioration of technological parameters (over 15% of biochar content makes a mixture unworkable) and slight deterioration of mechanical ones (flexural strength did not change significantly, and the compressive strength decreased by up to 15%). These results indicate that, despite some limitations, the use of biochar as an alternative pro-ecological filler is possible.