Effect of Volume Fraction and Length of Fiber on the Mechanical Properties of Fiber Reinforced Concrete

Fifteen concrete specimens were mixed and tested to explore the significance and limitation of appling the polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber and steel fiber with end hook to concrete. Main parameters investigated were volume fraction and length of the fibers. The measured mechanical properties of fiber reinforced concrete are analyzed according to the equivalent fiber amount index explaining the adding amount and length of fibers. Test results showed that compressive strength of fiber reinforced concrete was higher than that of concrete with no fiber by $10{\sim}20%$. The normalized splitting tensile strength and flexural strength of PVA fiber reinforced concrete were similar to those of concrete with no fiber, whereas those of steel fiber reinforced concrete increased with the increase of the equivalent fiber amount index. In particular, much higher ductile behavior was observed in steel fiber reinforced concrete than in PVA reinforced concrete, indicating that the slope of descending branch of load-displacement relationship of steel fiber reinforced concrete decreased with the increase of the volume fraction and length of the fiber.