Benefits of using amorphous metallic fibers in concrete pavement for long-term performance

Abstract

This study aims to examine the implications of amorphous metallic fibers on the mechanical and long-term properties of concrete pavement. Two different amounts of amorphous metallic fibers were incorporated into concrete, and plain concrete without fibers was also adopted as comparison. Test results indicated that the overall mechanical properties of concrete were improved by including the fibers, and the improvement increased when a higher amount of fibers was used. In particular, the equivalent flexural strength and flexural strength ratio were substantially improved by incorporating the amorphous metallic fibers. This may enable the thickness of airfield concrete pavement to decrease. The resistance to surface cracking of concrete pavement by repeated wheel loading was also improved with the addition of amorphous metallic fibers. In addition, by adding 5kg/m3 and 10kg/m3 amorphous metallic fibers in concrete pavement, roughly 1.2 times and 3.2 times longer service life was expected, respectively, as compared to their counterpart (plain concrete). Based on a life cycle cost analysis, the use of amorphous metallic fibers in concrete pavement was effective at decreasing the life cycle cost compared to plain concrete pavement, especially for severe traffic conditions.