Rheological and Mechanical Properties of Bentonite–Cement Paste Reinforced with Basalt Fibers

Bentonite cement paste (BCP) is among the grouting materials used widely in large-pore grouting and karst cave treatment. The mechanical properties of bentonite cement paste (BCP) will be improved by additional basalt fibers (BF). In this study, the effects of basalt fiber (BF) contents and their lengths on the rheological and mechanical properties of bentonite cement paste (BCP) have been examined. Yield stress (YS), plastic viscosity (PV), unconfined compressive strength (UCS), and splitting tensile strength (STS) were used to evaluate the rheological and mechanical properties of basalt fiber-reinforced bentonite cement paste (BFBCP). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) characterize microstructure development. The results indicate that the Bingham model can provide the rheological behavior of basalt fibers and bentonite cement paste (BFBCP). The yield stress (YS) and plastic viscosity (PV) increase as the content and length of basalt fiber (BF) increase. The effect of fiber content on yield stress (YS) and plastic viscosity (PV) is greater than that of fiber length. The addition of basalt fiber (BF) enhanced the unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and splitting tensile strength (STS) of basalt fiber-reinforced bentonite cement paste (BFBCP) at the optimum basalt fiber (BF) content of 0.6%. The optimum basalt fiber (BF) content tends to increase as curing age increases. The basalt fiber length of 9 mm is the most effective for improving unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and splitting tensile strength (STS). The large increments in unconfined compressive strength (UCS) and splitting tensile strength (STS) were 19.17% and 28.21% for the basalt fiber-reinforced bentonite cement paste (BFBCP), with a basalt fiber length of 9 mm and content of 0.6%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) shows that the randomly distributed basalt fiber (BF) forms a spatial network structure in basalt fiber-reinforced bentonite cement paste (BFBCP), which composes a stress system under the action of cementation. Basalt fibers (BF) used in crack generation processes slow down the flow through bridging and occur in the substrate to improve the mechanical properties of basalt fiber-reinforced bentonite cement paste (BFBCP).