Investigation on effects of fiber hybridization in copper slag concrete

Abstract

Studies on Fiber Reinforced Concrete (FRC) and Hybrid Fiber newlineReinforced Concrete (HFRC) extend the adaptability of concrete as a newlineconstruction material which indicates an important forward step towards newlineindustrial construction. A hybrid fiber combination has been developed by newlineinvestigating the properties of mono fibers and their influence in concrete at the newlinelowest water cement ratio by conducting several laboratory test programs. From newlinethe extensive literature studies and rigorous trials, the optimum solution was newlineidentified to be replacing the fine aggregate partially to enhance the workability newlineas well as strength properties of the mixture. newlineAmong various secondary materials, copper slag a by-product of newlinecopper ore refineries is considered for partial replacement of fine aggregate for newlinedecades. In the proposed work, steel and basalt fibres were chosen as macro and newlinemicro fiber based on which the basic mechanical properties such as compression, newlinesplit tension and flexural strength of prisms were studied followed by the newlineoptimization of hybrid combination of fibres in the concrete mix. Fracture newlineparameters, radiation shielding properties, the influence of steel re-bars as newlineprimary reinforcement in concrete were investigated and its micro structural newlineproperties were examined. A numerical study has been conducted by Finite newlineElement modeling in ANSYS software to validate the parameters in which the newlineexperiments were conducted subjected to flexure. newlineBased on the experimental results, the substantial performance of newlinehybrid fiber reinforced concrete was reported compared to the conventional newlineconcrete at an optimum volume fraction with 6%, 74% and 85% strength newlineincrement subjected to compression, tension and flexure. It was also found that newlinethe value of fracture energy and toughness was 17 and 4.5 times greater than the newlinecontrol concrete while the basalt fiber reinforced concrete newline