Composite materials based on natural fibres applied for structural reinforcement

Abstract

Environmental problems and environmental protection triggered a rapid development of natural fibres as sustainable materials for the reinforcement of reinforced concrete structures. Synthetic fibre polymer composite materials have been widely accepted by the construction industries as an effective external reinforcement material to rehabilitate deficiencies in existing structures. These materials have exceptional performance such as high strength to weight ratio, corrosion resistance and lightness. However, the disadvantages include high costs during manufacturing and end-of-life services, less environmentally friendly and causing adverse effects on human health. This article presents an experimental program on the use of natural fibres as reinforcement in composite materials for structural strengthening. Different types of natural fibre fabrics (hemp, flax, mixed hemp and cotton) in terms of their mechanical properties were studied. The fibre and fibre fabric sheets were tested in tension test and compared with carbon and glass fibre fabric sheet as reference. So, this study carries out the effect of natural hemp and flax fibre fabric thickness on ultimate loads of specimens. In addition, the ultimate load and stiffness of strengthened beams were investigated. In fact, the results show that the reinforcement technique allows to increase the load-bearing of strengthened structure by 8% to 35% in bending tests.