Steel fibers recovered from recycled tires were considered for use as reinforcement in concrete to improve the tensile properties of concrete as well as being an economically viable and environmentally friendly alternative. This paper investigates the effect of purified and non-purified recycled tire steel fiber in concrete with a constant fiber proportion of 30 kg m−3 to determine properties in fresh and hardened concrete. The results indicate that concrete with purified tire fibers have better tensile properties than those with non-purified tire fibers. Density, strength, and toughness significantly increase but workability tends to decrease when using recycled tire steel fiber as reinforcement in concrete.

Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world. Over ten billion tons of concrete are being produced each year resulting in exhaustion of natural materials and an enormous carbon footprint. One of the primary goals of concrete technology today is to reduce the use of Portland cement and natural fine aggregates by partially replacing them with various waste materials and by-products of industrial processes. The paper summarizes the results of a study where the partial replacement of river sand and Portland cement was successfully applied using steel slag aggregate, silica fume and glass waste.