Optimized Workability and Mechanical Properties of FRCM by using Fiber Factor Approach: Theoretical and Experimental Study

Abstract

This paper discusses a study on the optimization of mechanical properties of polypropylene fiber reinforced cementitious material (FRCM) through workability control of fresh properties. To this aim, a simple model is proposed herein describing the contact network between fibers inside FRCMs. The suspension was regarded as a two-phase composite in which fibers were suspended in a viscous cement paste. The theoretical framework presented in this paper and confirmed by experiments shows that there is a critical fiber factor above which the workability properties of fibers are mainly affected by the interactions of fibers in suspension. Moreover, there is a dense fiber factor above which the fibers tend to clump and both workability and mechanical properties of fibers significantly degrade. The obtained results show that adequate workability and a properly adjusted fiber factor are keys to obtain proper flexural and tensile strength. The findings in this paper can provide a rational foundation for mix design of FRCM by adjusting the fiber factor as an effective tool to control the workability of FRCM and practically achieve optimal hardened properties.

Department(s)

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering

Comments

This work was financially supported by Research Grant from Islamic Azad University, Qazvin Branch, Qazvin, Iran.

Keywords and Phrases

Critical fiber factor; Fiber reinforced cementitious materials; Mechanical properties; Optimum fiber factor; Polypropylene fiber; Workability

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

1359-5997; 1871-6873

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2015 Springer Verlag, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Apr 2015

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