Developments and mechanical behaviors of steel fiber reinforced ultra-lightweight cement composite with different densities

Abstract

Ultra-lightweight cement composite (ULCC) has attracted extensive research interests in both civil and offshore engineering constructions due to its high specific strengths. In order to satisfy different engineering construction demands, four types novel steel fiber reinforced ultra-lightweight cement composite (ULCC) with different densities ranging from 1250 kg/m3 to 1550 kg/m3 were proposed. Extensive standard compressive and tensile tests were performed to obtain the mechanical properties of these ULCCs with different densities, which will offer useful information for the developments of design on engineering constructions with such types of ULCC. Based on these test results, constitutive laws were established to describe the compressive and tensile stress–strain behaviors of ULCC with varying densities. Regarding the applications of the ULCC in engineering constructions, a ULCC flat slab with density of 1550 kg/m3 under concentrated loading was tested. The failure mechanisms and ultimate strength behaviors of this ULCC flat slab were reported. 3D FE model was also developed to simulate the structural behaviors of the novel ULCC flat slab, and its accuracy was confirmed by the reported test results. With the validated FE model and reported mechanical properties of ULCC with different densities, structural behaviors of ULCC flat slabs with these ULCCs were investigated. Analytical model based on the method of bending resistance in MCS-EPFL was proposed to predict the ultimate resistance of ULCC flat slab.