Improving the mechanical properties of lightweight foamed concrete using various types of fibres

Abstract

Lightweight foamed concrete has recently been adopted as a more sustainable construction material due to various features such as reduction in member size, better thermal insulation, and cost savings. This work examines an attempt to improve the brittle nature of foam concrete with the addition of different types of fibres. Five types of fibres were used: steel fibres (hooked-ends), micro steel fibres (straight ends), carbon, glass, and polypropylene fibres. The effect of fibre type on the fresh (density and flowability) and hardened (compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, flexural strength, and static modulus of elasticity) properties of lightweight foamed concrete were thus investigated. The results collected from the experimental work revealed that steel fibres significantly improve the performance of lightweight foamed concrete in terms most properties while other types of fibres (carbon, glass and polypropylene fibres) improved properties at different levels to the steel fibres. Using 0.45 hooked-ends steel fibres gave the most significant improvement in splitting, flexural strength, modulus of elasticity and compressive strength at 162.5%, 83.78%, 72.41%, and 63.63%, respectively.

Effect of Using Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) and Deformed Steel Bars on the Bonding Behavior of Lightweight Foamed Concrete

“…By incorporating foamed concrete in the construction sector, exploitation of natural resources, mainly the coarse aggregates can be sustainably monitored [6,7]. Additionally, some other advantages offered by the foamed concrete are (i) enhanced thermal insulation, consequently reducing the energy expenditure, (ii) consumption of harmful environmental wastes (such as silica fume, fly ash, and ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) [8,9]) with pozzolanic properties that can used as chemical binders, thereby reducing cement consumption and therefore high carbon emissions, (iii) ease in transportation of structural members due to its light weight, which reduces labor costs and therefore the cost of project [10].…”

Influence of Rubber Powder Modification Methods on the Mechanical and Durability Properties of Rubberized Magnesium Oxychloride Cement

“…Magnesium oxychloride cement is an inorganic cementitious material [1,2], which is widely used in various industries (e.g., agricultural appliances, wood production and home decoration, fire-fighting pipelines, etc.) due to its useful properties, such as being fast forming, providing superior mechanical properties early-stage, good adhesion and good fire resistance [3][4][5][6][7].…”