Flexural behavior of reinforced concrete beams: Comparative analysis between high-performance concrete and ordinary concrete

This paper presents an experimental study on the flexural strength of reinforced concrete beams made with high performance concrete (HPC) and ordinary concrete (OC). We are carried an experimental campaign aimed comes in three points: 1-the study of the law of behavior of the two materials (OC and HPC), 2-the influence of the compressive strength of concrete and the rate of longitudinal reinforcement on the load-deflection behavior and ductility index, 3-comparative analysis (ACI318, Eurocode 2 and BS8110) against the crack opening. Test results showed that the capacity of the beams in HPC is higher (6% to 20 %) than the beams in OC. The use of HPC is more efficient than the OC to delay the first cracking. The average value of the ductility index for the beams in HPC is 1.30 times those beams in OC. The formula for calculating the crack opening derived of the Eurocode 2 gives the best prediction the crack width of beams (for both types of concrete).