Investigation on Fracture Behavior of Cementitious Composites Reinforced with Aligned Hooked-End Steel Fibers

Abstract

Aligning steel fibers is an effective way to improve the mechanical properties of steel fiber cementitious composites (SFRC). In this study, the magnetic field method was used to prepare the aligned hooked-end steel fiber cementitious composites (ASFRC) and the fracture behavior was investigated. In order to achieve the alignment of steel fibers, the key parameters including the rheology of the mixture and magnetic induction of electromagnetic field were theoretically analyzed. The results showed that, compared with SFRC, the cracking load and the ultimate load of ASFRC were increased about 24–55% and 51–86%, respectively, depending on the fiber addition content. In addition, the flexural tensile strength and residual flexural strength of ASFRC were found to increase up to 105% and 100%, respectively. The orientation of steel fibers also has a significant effect on energy consumption. The fracture energy of ASFRC was 56–70% greater than SFRC and the reinforcement effect of hooked-end steel fiber was higher than straight steel fiber. The fibers in the fracture surface showed that not only was the number of fibers of ASFRC higher than that of SFRC, but also the orientation efficiency factor of ASFRC was superior to SFRC, which explains the improvement of fracture behavior of ASFRC.

Structural use of fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete with recycled aggregates: Case study of a foundation wall in Spain

“…• Wall dimensions: the larger the wall, the further the fiber must travel, and therefore the more likely it will rotate. This has consequences, from a structural standpoint, on the post-cracking behavior of fiber-reinforced concrete slabs [70]. In any case, the results presented in Fig.…”

Development of Concrete Mixture for Spun-Cast Full-Scale Precast Concrete Pipes Incorporating Bundled Steel and Polypropylene Fibers

“…It was found that hook-ended steel fibers resulted in better improvement in the tensile performance compared with straight steel fibers. Khan et al [ 30 ] found that aligning the steel fibers in the desired direction using magnetic field while the concrete is still in a fresh state resulted in the significant enhancement of the cracking and ultimate loads of concrete. Abed et al [ 31 ] reported improvement in the flexure and shear performance of self-compacting concrete incorporating steel and polypropylene fibers with increasing dosage of the fibers.…”

Numerical Modeling of Concrete Deep Beams Made with Recycled Aggregates and Steel Fibers

“…Despite their significant environmental benefits, the use of RCAs in the concrete industry is still limited to nonstructural applications due to their inferior properties compared with those of NAs [2][3][4]. The addition of steel fibers to cement-based mixtures improves the tensile strength, postcracking tensile resistance, flexural strength, and energy absorption capacity [5,6]. Steel fibers have a potential to transform the mode of failure of cement-based mixtures from quasi-brittle to pseudo-ductile through bridging micro-and macro-cracks caused by an applied load [6].…”

“…The addition of steel fibers to cement-based mixtures improves the tensile strength, postcracking tensile resistance, flexural strength, and energy absorption capacity [5,6]. Steel fibers have a potential to transform the mode of failure of cement-based mixtures from quasi-brittle to pseudo-ductile through bridging micro-and macro-cracks caused by an applied load [6]. As such, one of the solutions proposed in the literature to improve various properties of concrete with RCAs is the addition of steel fibers [7][8][9][10].…”