This paper investigates the tensile behavior of reinforced engineering cementitious composite (ECC) members. Twelve reinforced ECC members were tested in uniaxial tension. The stress‐average strain curves, failure modes, and the strain of longitudinal reinforcement at selected sections were obtained during testing. The influence of reinforcement ratio on the load resistance and deformation capacity of members was determined. Test results showed that the tensile behavior of reinforced ECC members could be divided into three stages, namely, the elastic stage, the microcracking stage and the major cracking stage. ECC significantly contributed to the load resistance of reinforced ECC members before the formation of major cracks through tension stiffening effect. The load capacity and deformation capacity of reinforced ECC members increased with the increase of reinforcement ratios. For members with ungrooved steel bars, the ultimate load and ultimate strain increased by 130.0% and 115.2% with the reinforcement ratio increased from 1.01% to 2.26%. For members with grooved steel bars, the ultimate load and ultimate strain increased by 123.6% and 98.7% with the reinforcement ratio increased from 0.78% to 2.04%. Based on the test results, the failure mechanism of reinforced ECC members was analyzed and equations for predicting the load capacity of members were proposed. Comparisons between experimental and calculated load capacities suggested that the calculated results were in good agreement with the experimental values. The study on the tensile behavior of reinforced ECC members provides useful results for the design and application of reinforced ECC members.
Polyvinyl alcohol‐engineered cementitious composite (PVA‐ECC) exhibits strain hardening and multiple cracking characteristics under tension. Its superior tensile behavior may also influence the flexural behavior of reinforced PVA‐ECC beams. This paper investigates the load capacity and failure mode of reinforced PVA‐ECC beams in bending. Seven beams with different tensile reinforcement ratios, including six PVA‐ECC beams and one conventional concrete beam, were tested in the experimental program. The influence of reinforcement ratio on load capacity and failure characteristics was discussed in detail. Test results showed that with increasing reinforcement ratio, the ultimate load of beams was increased, but the failure mode was changed from fracture of PVA‐ECC in the tension zone to crushing in the compression zone, thereby limiting the full development of beam ductility. An analytical model is proposed to calculate the load and the vertical deflection of beams. In the model, the tension‐stiffening effect of reinforcement after cracking of PVA‐ECC is considered by defining the bond–slip relationship of reinforcement embedded in PVA‐ECC. Comparisons are made between experimental results in the literature and those calculated by using the analytical model to show the accuracy of the model in predicting the load–deflection relationship, the moment–rotation relationship, and the moment–curvature relationship.
The polyvinyl-alcohol-engineered cementitious composite (PVA-ECC) is a superior cementitious material when used for tension and flexural loading. The utilization of PVA-ECC in the tension zone can prevent the development of wide cracks and increase the flexural resistance of reinforced PVA-ECC members. In this paper, a nonlinear finite element model is established to simulate the behavior of PVA-ECC beams in bending. In the model, the constitutive models for PVA-ECC in compression and tension are employed by simplifying them as piece-wise linear models, and the bond between the reinforcing bar and PVA-ECC is also considered. The load–deflection curve and failure mode of beams can be obtained from the finite element model. Comparisons between numerical and experimental results show that the developed numerical model can estimate the ultimate load and failure mode of beams with reasonably good accuracy. After evaluating the accuracy of the finite element model, parameter analysis is conducted to investigate the effects of the reinforcement ratio, steel strength grade, and mechanical properties of PVA-ECC on the flexural behavior of reinforced PVA-ECC beams. The numerical results conclude that the effects of reinforcement ratio on the peak load, stiffness, and deflection are obvious while the influence of steel grade is mainly on the peak load. The tensile localization strain of PVA-ECC mainly affects the ductility of the beam. Furthermore, a design method is proposed based on the plane-section assumption to calculate the ultimate load of reinforced PVA-ECC beams, in which the contribution of PVA-ECC to the moment resistance of beam sections is considered. Comparisons between existing design methods and the proposed method indicate that the ultimate load of beams can be predicted more accurately by considering the tensile strength of PVA-ECC in the tension zone.
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