Influence of Basalt and Geo-Textile Fiber Wrapping on Compressive and Flexural Strengths of HDPE-filled Reinforced Concrete

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the combined effect of filler and Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) wrapping on the compression and flexural behavior of concrete beam structure. Methods: In this study, High-Density Polyethylene Fiber (HDPE) is used as filler in concrete ranging from 0.5 to 3% in the M30 grade concrete. The Basalt and Geotextile FRP mats were wrapped on to the concrete beams to estimate the influence of HDPE filler and fiber wrapping on compression and flexural strengths. Findings: The addition of 0.5 % and 1% of HDPE fillers in M30 grade concrete has a significant impact on compressive strength by up to 6% and flexural strength by 20% when compared to conventional concrete. Improvement: Wrapping concrete beam samples with Basalt and Geotextile fiber along with HDPE fillers exhibits an increase in compressive strength by 30% and Flexural strength by 60% with respect to pristine concrete beam samples. Novelty: Inadequate studies were found on the effect of filler and FRP wrapping on the compression and flexural strength of concrete beams. Hence, a new method of avoiding the complete failure of concrete beams by adopting a filler/fiber wrapping technique to enhance the load-carrying capacity in the concrete. Further, a greater attention was made through morphological studies to know the cumulative effect of both constituents on the strength of concrete samples.