Experimental investigation on uniaxial tensile strength of hybrid fibre concrete

In an experimental study on fracture properties of hybrid fibre concrete, specimens with varying fibre content (mixtures of short and long fibres) were loaded in uniaxial tension. Dog-bone shaped specimens of four different sizes in a size range of 1:8 were tested. Focus of the study was the determination of the size effect on nominal strength and fracture processes. A vacuum impregnation technique was used to investigate the fracture process. Experiments showed that multiple cracks, which formed before the peak, localised into one major crack beyond peak. Multiple cracking could be obtained by increasing the amount of thin short fibres whereas the large fibres can enhance the bridging of localised macrocracks. With decreasing strength, the size effect on the strength appears to increase. It is observed that the size effect on nominal tensile strength decreases with increasing material ductility. Preliminary analysis of the results showed that the observed size effect can be considered as a combination of statistical and structural size effects. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.