Cementitious Composites Reinforced with Recycled and Natural Fibers: Experimental Results and Numerical Modelling 2019

Dear Colleagues,

The use of “green” constituents is emerging as a challenge for enhancing sustainability in concrete production. In this context, the use of recycled fibers is one of the most promising prospects.

This Special Issue aims to collect contributions on the most recent advances on the physical and mechanical characterisation of Fiber-Reinforced Cementitious Composites (FRCC) with either Recycled Fibers (RFs) or Natural Fibers (NFs). Specifically, it includes (without being limited to) studies on FRCC produced with either Recycled Steel Fibers (RSFs) obtained from waste tires or NFs obtained from plant, such as sisal, hemp, flax, etc. However, research on types of fibers other than the two aforemenioned types are also of interest as they may shed light on more innovative and less explored possibilities in FRCCs towards a more sustainable built environment.

Further, although experimental results are certainly relevant in gaining empirical evidence about the technical feasibility of using RFs and NFs in cementitious composites and their performance with respect to purposely produced “industrial” fibers, theoretical contributions intended at capturing the specific features of fibers and their interactions with cement-matrices are also welcome.

We hope this Special Issue will provide readers with a selection of papers outlining the current state of knowledge on the use of RFs and NFs in cementitous composites. Specifically, the following aspects may be addressed:

1. Technology of production and material properties;
2. Applications for structural and functional purposes;
3. Design and numerical approaches. 

Prof. Dr. Joaquim Antonio Oliveira de Barros
Prof. Dr. Enzo Martinelli
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Fibers is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2000 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.