Experimental investigation on behavior of steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC)

• Main Author: Wang, Chuanbo
• Language: en
• Published: University of Canterbury. Civil Engineering 2008
• Subjects: Steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC); compression behavior of SFRC; tensile behavior; shear behavior; direct tension; bond tension; flexural toughness; fracture energy; modelling
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10092/1155

During the last four decades, fiber reinforced concrete has been increasingly used in structural applications. It is generally accepted that addition of steel fibers significantly increases tensile toughness and ductility, also slightly enhances the compressive strength. Although several studies have reported previously the favorable attributes of steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC), little general data is related to performance modeling. There are studies on the effect of fibers on compression, tension and shear behavior of concrete. As models proposed so far can, at best, describe only a few aspect of SFRC with a given type and amount of fibers, establishing simple and accurate generalized equations to describe the behavior of SFRC in tension, compression and shear that take into account the fiber type and content is essential. Therefore, a comprehensive experimental research on SFRC is conducted in University of Canterbury to develop generalized equations to represent the characteristics of SFRC. In this research, standard material tests of SFRC are carried out in tension, compression and shear to enable the parametric characterization and modeling of SFRC to be conducted. The tests are conducted using two different propriety fiber types (NovotexTM and DramixTM) with volumetric ratios ranging from 0 to 2 percent of the Novotex fibers and with 1 percent Dramix fibers. Compression tests are conducted on small and large cylinders. For characterization of tensile behavior, several different test methods are used including: direct tension of SFRC alone; SFRC with tension applied to an embedded longitudinal rebar; and flexural bending test. Similarly direct shear tests are conducted to investigate the additional shear resistance contributed by steel fibers. Variations in the results of different specimens are reconciled through normalization of stress and strain parameters. Based on the experimental results, empirical relations are derived for modeling and analysis of SFRC.