Effect of mineral admixtures and steel fiber volume contents on the behavior of high performance fiber reinforced concrete

High Performance Fiber Reinforced Concrete (HPFRC) is a structural material with advanced mechanical properties. The structural design of HPFRC members is based on the post-cracking residual strength provided by the addition into the mix of the fibers. Moreover, the addition of different types of mineral admixtures influences the overall behavior of this material. In order to optimize the performance of HPFRC in structural members, it is necessary to evaluate the mechanical properties and the post-cracking behavior in a reliable way. As a result, an experimental study on six different sets of HPFRC specimens was carried out. The main parameters that varied were the fiber volume content and the types of mineral addition. The behavior in compression, in flexural tension and the shrinkage properties were evaluated and critically analyzed in order to give a guide for structural use. The results showed that by adding high fiber volume content and the Algerian blast furnace slag into the mix, the HPFRC material obtained has a very good performance and it is suitable for use in practice. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.