Abstract
Compared to conventional concrete, lightweight concrete is more brittle in nature however, in many situations its application is advantageous due to its lower weight. The associated brittleness issue can be, to some extent, addressed by incorporation of discrete fibers. It is now established that fibers modify some fresh and hardened concrete properties. However, evaluation of those properties for lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete (LWFC) against conventional/normal weight concrete of similar strength class has not been done before. Current study not only discusses the change in these properties for lightweight concrete after the addition of steel fibers, but also presents a comparison of these properties with conventional concrete with and without fibers. Both the lightweight and conventional concrete were reinforced with similar types and quantity of fibers. Hooked end steel fibers were added in the quantities of 0, 20, 40 and 60kg/m3. For similar compressive strength class, results indicate that compared to normal weight fiber-reinforced concrete (NWFC), lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete (LWFC) has better fresh concrete properties, but performs poorly when tested for hardened concrete properties.
Highlights
Structural lightweight concrete is defined as the one with minimum 28-days compressive strength of 17MPa and equilibrium density between 1120 and 1920kg/m3[1], whereas a cubic meter of conventional concrete weighs around 2300kg
Handling of lightweight concrete was easy compared to conventional concrete at all fiber content levels because the aggregates used in the mixes making were twice lighter in weight than gravels and had regular round shape
No obvious divergence was noticed on the compressive strength of normal weight fiber-reinforced concrete (NWFC) with maximizing volume, given that the compressive strength of lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete (LWFC) rises up to 40Kg/m3 fiber volume
Summary
Structural lightweight concrete is defined as the one with minimum 28-days compressive strength of 17MPa and equilibrium density between 1120 and 1920kg/m3[1], whereas a cubic meter of conventional concrete weighs around 2300kg. Lightweight concrete properties and the material behavior is still in initial stage, for example there are no code guidelines for design of members produced using lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete, whereas a comprehensive committee report by ACI [10] is available for normal weight fiber reinforced concrete. It is essential for the development of any such design guidelines that the behavior of lightweight fiber-reinforced concrete is firstly well understood.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callMore From: Engineering, Technology & Applied Science Research
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
