Effect of steel fiber on the shear behavior of reinforced recycled aggregate concrete beams

Abstract

In this research, the influence of using steel fibers on the shear action of reinforced concrete beams, made of recycled concrete aggregate (RCA), was investigated through experiment and finite element analysis (FEA). First, 12 reinforced concrete beams were tested with varying amounts of steel fibers. These beams contained normal concrete aggregate (NCA) as reference beams besides RCA beams. All beam models had the same 150 mm x 250 mm cross‐section and 2000 mm length. The beams had three bars of 16 mm reinforcement and two bars of 12 mm reinforcement at its bottom and top, respectively. Three replacement ratios of recycled aggregate (RA) were considered; 0%, 30%, and 70%. Moreover, steel fibers were introduced in the beams at 0%, 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% content by volume. The beams were evaluated under a four‐point bending test while the load‐deflection diagram and failure load for all beams were considered as the criteria for comparing the shear response of different beams. A thorough FEA was carried out using ANSYS to model these beams. The FEA results were compared with the outcomes of the experimental tests, and a clear agreement was obtained. The results showed that using steel fibers improved the shear strength of the beams by 2.94%, 15.88%, and 34.71% for NAC beams, 1.39%, 11.11%, and 16.67% for 30% RCA beams, and 24.53%, 40.57%, and 59.44% for 70% RCA beams, respectively by using steel fibers with ratios of 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5%, respectively.

Properties and durability of self‐compacting concrete incorporated with nanosilica, fly ash, and limestone powder

“…1,2 It is also concrete which shows less resistance to flow, so it can be placed and compacted under its own weight without any vibration effort, even though it has sufficient viscosity to handle without segregation or bleeding. [3][4][5][6][7][8] SCC is extensively used around the world as it has opened up new fronts for the construction of various civil engineering structures. 9,10 SCC has been the most significant development in concrete technology in many ways recently.…”

“…Self‐compacting concrete (SCC) is a new type of concrete that reaches every corner in the formwork under self‐weight 1,2 . It is also concrete which shows less resistance to flow, so it can be placed and compacted under its own weight without any vibration effort, even though it has sufficient viscosity to handle without segregation or bleeding 3–8 . SCC is extensively used around the world as it has opened up new fronts for the construction of various civil engineering structures 9,10 .…”

Mechanical and durability properties of steel fiber‐reinforced concrete containing coarse recycled concrete aggregate

“…It is now well‐known that incorporating steel fibers leads to an enhanced mechanical performance of concrete by improving crack propagation, ductility, and toughness of concrete 27–30 . Steel fiber can also reduce the general ecological effect of construction because of an improved maintenance life of structures manufactured with steel fiber‐reinforced concrete 31,32 .…”

“…Xie et al 39 presented that enhancement of flexural strength and toughness of recycled aggregate concrete incorporating steel fiber was better than those incorporating polypropylene fiber. Ibrahim et al 29 reported that using steel fiber by 0.5%, 1%, and 1.5% improved the shear strength of concrete containing 70% RCA by 24.5%, 40.6%, and 59.4%, respectively.…”