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Advances in High-Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete, Second Edition

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Civil Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 April 2025) | Viewed by 7653

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
1. Department of Civil Engineering and Geomatics, Cheng Shiu University, No. 840, Chengching Rd., Niaosong District, Kaohsiung 83347, Taiwan
2. Center for Environmental Toxin and Emerging-Contaminant Research, Cheng Shiu University, No. 840, Chengching Rd., Niaosong District, Kaohsiung 83347, Taiwan
3. Super Micro Mass Research and Technology Center, Cheng Shiu University, No. 840, Chengching Rd., Niaosong District, Kaohsiung 83347, Taiwan
Interests: concrete materials; lightweight aggregate concrete; neural networks
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Fiber-reinforced concrete mainly uses fiber to improve the properties of reinforced concrete, such as tensile strength, deformability, and dynamic load resistance. In order to reduce cracks in concrete (due to shrinkage or autogenous shrinkage) and to increase tensile ductility and fire resistance, various types of fibers have been developed for the market and have been widely used in various construction projects. Many scholars have developed a blend of different types of fibers to obtain better concrete engineering properties, such as enhanced toughness, as well as to solve problems caused by the high fiber content of traditional fiber concrete. For example, the amount of added fiber can be varied to optimize the bond relationship between the paste and the fiber, such that it can exhibit steel-like strain-hardening behavior when subjected to direct tension. This cementitious composite, with tensile strain hardening, is called high-performance fiber-reinforced concrete (HPFRC).

This Special Issue of Applied Sciences, “Advances in High-Performance Fiber-Reinforced Concrete, Second Edition”, is intended for a wide and interdisciplinary audience and covers recent advances in:

  • Innovative concepts to improve the mechanical properties of HPFRC;
  • Developments of new fiber technology to improve the performance of HPFRC;
  • Engineering applications of HPFRC;
  • Reduction in the negative impact of fiber on certain properties of concrete;
  • Mix design of HPFRC;
  • Fresh properties and fire behavior of HPFRC;
  • Bond behavior of HPFRC;
  • Thermal properties and fire behavior of HPFRC;
  • Durability of HPFRC.

For this Special Issue, authoritative review articles and original research papers on HPFRC regarding the latest findings related to material properties and structural implications of civil and architectural applications are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Chao-Wei Tang
Guest Editor

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 1594 KiB  
Article
The Potential of Fiber-Reinforced Concrete to Reduce the Environmental Impact of Concrete Construction
by Marcos G. Alberti, Alejandro Enfedaque, Duarte M. V. Faria and Miguel Fernández Ruiz
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(15), 6629; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14156629 - 29 Jul 2024
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2174
Abstract
Material optimization was one of the challenges for achieving cost-competitive solutions when concrete was introduced in construction, leading to new structural shapes for both civil works and buildings. As concrete construction became dominant, saving material was given less significance, and the selection of [...] Read more.
Material optimization was one of the challenges for achieving cost-competitive solutions when concrete was introduced in construction, leading to new structural shapes for both civil works and buildings. As concrete construction became dominant, saving material was given less significance, and the selection of the structural typology was mostly influenced by construction or architectural considerations. Simple and non-time-consuming methods for building thus arose as the dominant criteria for design, and this led to the construction of less efficient structures. Currently, the awareness of the environmental footprint in concrete construction has brought the focus again to the topic of structural efficiency and material optimization. In addition, knowledge of material technology is pushing the use of cements and binders with lower environmental impact. Within this framework, Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (FRC) has been identified as a promising evolution of ordinary concrete construction. In this paper, a discussion is presented on the structural properties required for efficient design, focusing on the toughness and deformation capacity of the material. By means of several examples, the benefits and potential application of limit analysis to design at the Ultimate Limit State with FRC are shown. On this basis, the environmental impact of a tailored mix design and structural typology is investigated for the case of slabs in buildings, showing the significant impact that might be expected (potentially reducing CO2-eq emissions to half or even less in slabs when compared to ordinary solutions). Full article
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15 pages, 4927 KiB  
Article
Experimental Investigation of TR-UHPC Composites and Flexural Behavior of TR-UHPC Composite Slab
by Jiuzhi Fu, Yang Zhang and Yanyue Qin
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(8), 3161; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14083161 - 9 Apr 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 951
Abstract
In this investigation, the effects of different fabrics with 0.20% carbon fiber textile (CFT), 0.21% glass fiber textile (GFT), and 0.25% basalt fiber textile (BFT) on the properties of TR-UHPC were investigated by axial tensile tests. A bending test of the BFT-UHPC pavement [...] Read more.
In this investigation, the effects of different fabrics with 0.20% carbon fiber textile (CFT), 0.21% glass fiber textile (GFT), and 0.25% basalt fiber textile (BFT) on the properties of TR-UHPC were investigated by axial tensile tests. A bending test of the BFT-UHPC pavement slab was carried out. In terms of axial tensile performance, the fiber textiles ranked in the following sequence: CFT, BFT, and GFT. Additionally, the corresponding increases in the initial cracking strength and ultimate tensile strength were 18.0% and 21.9% for the CFT, 12.0% and 16.0% for the BFT, and only 9.1% and 8.0% for the GFT, respectively. Increasing the textile reinforcement ratio of the BFT from 0.25% to 0.50% improved the cracking stress and peak stress of the specimen by 12.0% and 15.9%, respectively. Moreover, the ultimate strain of the 0.50%-BFT reinforcing case was 1.4 times that of the 0.25%-BFT reinforcing case and 2.6 times that of the unreinforced specimen in terms of ductility. The results of the stacking test on the BFT reinforced UHPC pedestrian slab indicate that the mid-span deflection of the test slab under normal use load is 0.775 mm, which is only 19.8% of the deflection limit. Additionally, the test slab remained in the elastic stage without any cracking. The BFT effectively enhanced the toughness of the UHPC thin slab after cracking. It is expected to be applied as a novel structure to bridge pedestrian slabs, bridge decks, and other thin UHPC members, thereby improving the durability and mechanical properties of bridge structures. Full article
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25 pages, 13210 KiB  
Article
Applying Microbial-Induced Calcium Carbonate Precipitation Technology to Improve the Bond Strength of Lightweight Aggregate Concrete after High-Temperature Damage
by How-Ji Chen, Yung-Hsiang Lo, Chao-Wei Tang and Han-Wen Chang
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(4), 1416; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14041416 - 8 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1842
Abstract
High temperatures and external force can easily lead to a decline in the bond strength of reinforced concrete components. Microbial-induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) technology has considerable potential for repairing concrete. Given this, this study utilized MICP technology to improve the bond strength [...] Read more.
High temperatures and external force can easily lead to a decline in the bond strength of reinforced concrete components. Microbial-induced calcium carbonate precipitation (MICP) technology has considerable potential for repairing concrete. Given this, this study utilized MICP technology to improve the bond strength of heat- and pull-damaged lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC). The specimens of a control group (Group A) and two experimental groups (Group B and Group C) were prepared. The experimental group was prepared using lightweight aggregates (LWAs) that had been immersed in a nutrient solution and a bacterial solution. The control group was prepared using LWAs that were not immersed in a nutrient solution or bacterial solution. These specimens healed themselves in different ways after exposure to high temperatures (300 °C and 500 °C) and pull-out damage. Groups A and B adopted the same self-healing method; that is, their specimens were placed in a computer-controlled incubator at 40 °C. Group C used different self-healing methods. The specimens in this group were soaked in a mixed solution of urea and calcium acetate at 40 °C for two days and then taken out and placed in an incubator at 40 °C for two days. A cycle took four days until the expected self-healing age was reached. After being exposed to 300 °C and self-healed for 90 days, the residual bond strengths of the secondary pull-out tests in Groups A, B, and C were 20.63, 22.13, and 25.69 MPa, respectively. Moreover, compared with Group A, the relative bond strength ratios of the secondary pull-out tests in Groups B and C increased by 5.8% and 20.3%, respectively. This demonstrates that MICP technology could effectively improve the bond strength of LWAC after high-temperature and pull-out damage. Full article
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16 pages, 7657 KiB  
Article
Numerical and Experimental Studies on Crack Resistance of Ultra-High-Performance Concrete Decorative Panels for Bridges
by Jiongfeng Zhao, Yang Zhang and Yanyue Qin
Appl. Sci. 2024, 14(2), 636; https://doi.org/10.3390/app14020636 - 11 Jan 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1476
Abstract
This study develops a new type of decorative bridge panel by ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) based on the project of the Guangyangwan Bridge. First, the numerical analysis was carried out using MIDAS and ABAQUS to find the critical position of the bridge and decorative [...] Read more.
This study develops a new type of decorative bridge panel by ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) based on the project of the Guangyangwan Bridge. First, the numerical analysis was carried out using MIDAS and ABAQUS to find the critical position of the bridge and decorative panels. The numerical results showed that the last concrete cantilever segment had the greatest vertical deflection, and the corresponding panel had the greatest stress response. Based on the numerical results, this study conducted a series of full-scale, self-balanced bending tests to examine the crack resistance of six UHPC panels and six glass fiber-reinforced concrete (GRC) panels with varying curved section thicknesses (from 25 to 40 mm). The experimental results indicate that, due to the high strength of the UHPC matrix and the wall effect of steel fiber distribution, the crack resistance of UHPC panels is significantly superior to that of GRC panels. UHPC panels possessed superior stiffness and ductility, while GRC panels showed brittle fracture when the curved section thickness reached 34 mm. The uniaxial tensile cracking strength of UHPC with a steel fiber volume fraction of 1.6% was 14.7% greater than that of GRC with a glass fiber volume fraction of 5%. At the same curved section thicknesses, UHPC decorative panels exhibit cracking loads and ultimate loads that are 64.3% to 123.0% and 29.2% to 115.0% greater than GRC panels, respectively. Hence, UHPC is more suitable to produce ultra-thin decorative panels for bridges that are subjected to severe environmental action and external forces. Full article
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