Reduction of water absorption capacity of cellulose fibres for its application in cementitious materials

Although some natural fibres have been used in cementitious materials, the performance of cement with natural fibres has been found to be less satisfactory. The strength loss is partially attributed to the water absorbed by the fibres. In order to alleviate this problem, cellulose fibres were chemically modified to reduce its water adsorption capacity. Results show that calcium hydroxide pretreatment reduces the water adsorption capacity to some extent. Fine grinding treatment further reduced water adsorption. The lowest water adsorption was achieved by cuprammonium solution pretreatment. Theoretical calculation of the hydroxyl groups demonstrates the water adsorbed by crystalline region is almost negligible.