Characteristics of Sustainable Self-compacting Concrete Reinforced by Fibres from Waste Materials

Abstract

The influences of fibres originating from different waste materials on the fresh and hardened properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC) were investigated in this study. For this purpose, a total number of 13 mixes of wood (WF), polyvinyl chloride (PF), aluminium (AF), and iron filing (IF) fibres, with volume fractions (Vf) of 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.5% were prepared. The investigated fresh properties of the prepared mixes were slump flow, T500, V-funnel as well as L-box tests, while the hardened properties were compressive strength, flexural strength, and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV). The findings indicated that although the majority of the prepared SCC mixes met the required self-compacting criteria, the inclusion of the waste fibres negatively affected the mix workability, particularly when Vf of 1.5% was used. Regarding the hardened properties, SCC mixes-containing IF exhibited a slight increase in both compressive and flexural strength compared with the reference mix without fibres, whereas mixes with AF fibres demonstrated a noticeable decrease in compressive strength, but with a comparable level of flexural strength. However, the flexural strength of WF and PF decreased as their Vf increased in the SCC mixes, although a slight increase in compressive strength was noted in the mixes with PF. Furthermore, there was no reliable relationship to be constructed between the compressive strength and UPV tests for all fibres used.