Mechanical characteristics and flexural behaviour of fibre-reinforced cementitious composite containing PVA and basalt fibres

Abstract

Fibre-reinforced cementitious composite (FRCC) is a type of composite that uses high volume of fibres to attain ductile properties. In this research, the effects of two different fibres, namely polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and basalt, on the mechanical properties of FRCC such as compressive, splitting tensile and flexural strengths were investigated. The fibres were used in varying volume fraction, which includes 1.0%, 1.5% and 2.0% and a hybrid combination of 1.5% basalt fibre with 1.5% PVA fibre for the preparation of the FRCC. The results showed that while the fibres had minimal effect on the compressive strength of FRCC, significant improvements in the splitting tensile and flexural strengths were found. In the comparison of the flexural performances, the introduction of PVA fibre in FRCC led to superior properties and it exhibited more ductile failure mode compared with basalt fibre and the optimum fibre dosage to be added was determined to be 1.5%.

Comparative Study of Lightweight Cementitious Composite Reinforced with Different Fibre Types and the Effect of Silane‐Based Admixture

“…Based on the results, an increase in fibre dosage decreased the workability of LCC regardless the type of fibre. Similar findings were reported by Jiang et al [19] and Loh et al [20]. With the inclusion of 0.50% of PP, PVA, and basalt fibre, the workability of the control mix decreased by 24.6%, 32.5%, and 56.9%, respectively.…”

“…However, the prismatic specimen of LCC-basalt broke into half after testing, as shown in Figure 7(b). is could be due to the rupture of basalt fibres since it possesses high stiffness [20]. Nevertheless, the fibres could still bridge the specimens from breaking into half in the case of LCC-PP and LCC-PVA (Figures 7(c) and 7(d)).…”

“…is could be related to the stiffness of fibre. Basalt fibre has the highest modulus of elasticity, about 100-110 GPa; thus, it has better resistance to deformation of specimens [20]. However, the prismatic specimen of LCC-basalt broke into half after testing, as shown in Figure 7(b).…”

“…Early strength development of LCC was observed by attaining 75.2% to 98.8% of its 28-day compressive strength at 7 days. is could be attributed to the use of SF [20] and SBR [21], which increased the cohesiveness of the matrix.…”

Experimental Investigation on the Mechanical Properties and Microstructure of Basalt Fiber Reinforced Engineered Cementitious Composite

“…The splitting tensile strength of ECC with 2% fiber volume fraction is also 29% higher than that of the nonfiber specimens at 3 days. However, compared with BF, the increase of PVA fiber volume fraction made ECC show a greater increase in tensile strength [ 31 ]. The strength reduction coefficient of PVA fibers is lower than that of BF and maybe that is the cause.…”