{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T09:08:33Z","timestamp":1788858513533,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":33,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"18","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1788825600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Polymers"],"abstract":"<jats:p>While the individual effects of sustainable fillers on cementitious systems are widely known, their combined tribological and fracture behaviors within a polymer concrete matrix remain largely unexplored. Addressing this gap, this study experimentally investigates the physical, mechanical, and tribological characteristics of polyester-based polymer concrete (PC). In addition to reference specimens produced with polyester resin and silica sand, modified mixtures were developed by replacing the silica sand with ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) and recycled waste concrete aggregate (WC) at various substitution ratios (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, and 25%). To evaluate the performance of the developed PCs, parameters including unit weight, water absorption capacity, flexural and compressive strengths, Shore D hardness, surface roughness, acid resistance, Bohme abrasion resistance, and fracture energy were analyzed. Furthermore, temperature variations on the friction surfaces were monitored in real time using a thermal camera during the Bohme abrasion tests. To elucidate the fracture mechanisms, the fractured surfaces were examined via digital microscopy. The quantitative findings indicate that a 25% GGBS replacement optimizes mechanical performance, increasing the compressive and flexural strengths by 21.2% (108.30 MPa) and 30.6% (35.29 MPa), respectively, alongside a 27% improvement in Bohme abrasion resistance. However, this modification significantly increases material brittleness, reducing the fracture energy by 53.3% compared to the reference. Conversely, although incorporating WC offers sustainability advantages, it limits mechanical performance, leading to decreases of up to 9.9% (80.46 MPa) in compressive strength and 15% (22.97 MPa) in flexural strength at a 20% substitution rate. Regarding fracture energy, while the W20 series absorbed more energy than the B25 series, it still remained 47.8% lower than the reference. Additionally, the GGBS-incorporated series demonstrated higher susceptibility to sulfuric acid attack compared to the WC-incorporated series.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/polym18182183","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]],"date-time":"2026-09-08T08:10:22Z","timestamp":1788855022000},"page":"2183","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Synergistic Effects of GGBS and Recycled Aggregates on the Tribological, Mechanical, and Fracture Behavior of Polymer Concretes"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"given":"Batuhan","family":"Aykanat","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Civil Engineering, Engineering Faculty, D\u00fczce University, 81620 D\u00fczce, T\u00fcrkiye"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"107205","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jobe.2023.107205","article-title":"The performance of novel polymer mortar containing vinyl ester resin reinforced by fly ash and iron sand under compressive, tensile, dan flexural test","volume":"76","author":"Rochman","year":"2023","journal-title":"J. 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