Full scale tests to compare the strength of polymer liners with high tensile steel mesh

Compared with welded steel mesh which is a passive support medium, Thin Spray-on Liners (TSL) have many advantages and it is believed that TSL have the potential to take the place of steel mesh support in underground coal mines. In this study, full scale tests were firstly conducted to determine the ultimate strength of a plain polymer liner and two types of plain steel mesh. In terms of load bearing capacity, it was found that the polymer liner was stronger than the mesh with thinner diameter wire and weaker than the mesh with thicker wire. The liner was much stiffer than both of the two steel mesh sizes. The polymer and steel mesh were further loaded with fractured concrete pieces. The results showed that the polymer-concrete composite not only achieved much greater maximum load but was also stiffer than the steel mesh-concrete test structure.