Effect of piassava lees in the fracture behavior of polymer mortars

In recent years, because of an increasing environmental consciousness and demands of global authorities, the use of natural fibers from renewable resources has become an excellent alternative of mortars composition, attending global sustainability. The aim of this research is to evaluate the feasibility of using piassava (Attalea Funifera Mart) lees as natural reinforcement of polymer mortars with particular regards to fracture and toughening mechanisms. Various weight fractions of aggregate 1%, 2%, 5%, 10% and 15% were replaced by the same weight of piassava lees. A significant reduction of the specific weight of the polymer mortars and an improvement of their post-peak flexural behavior followed by less brittle failure was observed.