The mechanical and electromagnetic wave absorption properties of foamed concrete: effect of Mn–Zn ferrite and carbon fiber

Abstract

To address electromagnetic pollution issues, a composite material was formulated by incorporating Mn-Zn ferrite (MZF) and carbon fiber (CF) into foamed concrete, thereby achieving both robust mechanical attributes and exceptional electromagnetic wave (EMW) absorption capabilities. Our results demonstrate that the incorporation of MZF harms the mechanical attributes of the foamed concrete, however, this simultaneously leads to a more uniform and focused pore size distribution, thereby significantly enhancing its reflection loss (RL) performance. Incorporating CF has proven effective in augmenting the foamed concrete’s mechanical strength and electromagnetic attenuation capacity. 0.3 wt% CF increased the compressive and flexural strength of the composite by 10.9% and 24.5%, respectively. The lowest recorded RL for the composite material within the 2–18 GHz frequency range reaches − 27.2 dB at a thickness of 8.7 mm and a resonant frequency of 15.84 GHz, while its adequate absorption bandwidth amounts to 1.44 GHz.