Impact of Steel Fiber on the Mechanical Property of Concrete Containing Mineral Admixture

Abstract

This article analyzes the mechanical behaviour of concrete containing fly ash, silica fume, and steel fibre, with 331 kg/m3 cement, 674 kg/m3 fine aggregate, and 1171 kg/m3 coarse aggregate. A concrete mixture with a water-binder ratio of 0.40 is prepared. Mineral admixtures such as silica fume and fly ash were also added to the cement in concentrations of 10% and 20%, respectively. The steel fibres are then incorporated in various proportion (0.5 percent, 1.0 percent, 1.5 percent, and 2.0 percent). The cube-shaped sample is used to test the compressive strength of hardened concrete with and without steel fibre, while the cylindrical sample and beam are utilised for indirect tensile and flexural strength testing. On the three replicas, all of the tests with various percentages of steel fibre were carried out, and the average value is reported in this article. The concrete without steel fibre had average compressive, flexural, and tensile properties of 60.05 MPa, 5.72 MPa, and 9.45 MPa, respectively and after adding 2 percent steel fibre, it increased to 74.25 MPa, 6.14 MPa, and 23.68 MPa, respectively, after 28 days. By performing a nonlinear analysis of the experimental data, a link between the percentages of steel fibre, curing days, compressive-tensile strength ratio, and compressive-flexural strength ratio has been established. The current study will help in lowering cement use, therefore minimising the negative environmental effect of cement manufacturing.