PSI - Issue 79

Agnieszka Chowaniec-Michalak et al. / Procedia Structural Integrity 79 (2026) 198–205

199

mechanical strength, excellent adhesion to the substrate, and ease of maintenance. These coatings provide durable and aesthetic surfaces with excellent resistance to abrasion and contact with aggressive media. At the same time, epoxy resins contain toxic substances such as bisphenol A, which, in their uncured state, are harmful to both the environment and human health. For this reason, one of the research directions in the development of epoxy resins is to reduce the resin component content by introducing fillers. According to Eurostat data (2024), in 2022, the countries of the European Union generated 2.23 billion tons of waste, corresponding to about 5 tons per capita. Of this amount, as much as 64% were mineral wastes, originating mainly from the construction sector (38.4%) and from mining and quarrying (22.7%). Such a large share of mineral waste indicates both their significant environmental impact and their resource potential in the context of a circular economy (CE). One possible direction for their utilization is their use in construction materials and polymer composites, where they can act as fillers, reducing the amount of primary raw materials. Among such materials, waste granite powders appear particularly promising. Their chemical inertness, hardness, and wide availability make them an attractive additive to epoxy resin coatings for flooring applications. In practical applications, epoxy floors are exposed to impact loads, such as falling tools, metal parts, wheel impacts from trolleys, or local assembly loads. Although there is no dedicated standard for evaluating the impact resistance of floor coatings, this property is crucial for the durability of the flooring. Therefore, from a design perspective, any modification of the composition, including the introduction of mineral fillers, should not reduce impact resistance. In this study, a substitute approach based on the falling weight method (EN ISO 6272-1:2011) was adopted, allowing for an objective comparison of material solutions and the determination of height thresholds at which damage occurs, relevant to the performance of epoxy flooring systems. Miturska-Bara ń ska and Antosz (2025) demonstrated that the modification of epoxy resins with a mineral filler, such as calcium carbonate, improves their mechanical properties. The authors also emphasized that the proper selection of filler type and its dispersion within the resin matrix are crucial for the mechanical resistance of the material. Hodul et al. (2021) found that the type of filler used has a greater influence on the properties of epoxy composites than the type of resin itself. The study utilized various industrial wastes, including waste glass from solar panels, waste from the production of mineral insulation boards, fly ash, neutralization sludge, and neutralisation sludge. The authors showed that coarser grains with uniform shapes improve compressive strength more effectively, while finer particles enhance flexural strength, abrasion resistance, and impact resistance. A ğ can and Kartal (2025) reviewed the literature on the use of waste-derived fillers in epoxy resins, analyzing the effects of filler type, amount, particle size, and surface treatment on the physical, mechanical, thermal properties of composites. The authors indicated that properly selected fractions of mineral waste can not only improve the performance parameters of the resin but also significantly reduce its toxicity and production cost. Chowaniec-Michalak et al. (2021, 2022a, 2022b) conducted earlier studies on the use of waste granite powders in epoxy resin coatings. It was shown that the addition of these powders can affect both the properties in the liquid state, such as viscosity and contact angle, and the mechanical parameters after curing, including pull-off strength. The laboratory tests were confirmed on a real scale. In one of the studies (2022b), the modified coating was applied in an actual facility (a car repair workshop), where adequate pull-off strength under service conditions was confirmed. The obtained results provide a direct background for further impact resistance studies presented in this paper. Previous studies have shown that the use of mineral waste in epoxy systems can improve their service properties and contribute to reducing the amount of epoxy resin and hardener needed for coating preparation. However, there is still a lack of clear data on the impact resistance of such systems, especially in the context of flooring coatings, for which impact loads represent an important service load. In the present study, two types of granite powders were used as fillers. Due to their mineral composition (mainly quartz and feldspars) and high chemical resistance, they can serve as a beneficial additive modifying the mechanical properties of epoxy resin coatings. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the type and amount of granite powders with different particle sizes on the impact resistance of epoxy coatings, using the falling weight method.