Investigation of the mechanical properties of lightweight concrete using expanded polystyrene reinforced with glass fibers

Abstract

The use of lightweight concrete has gained popularity in the industrial construction sector owing to its ability to reduce dead weight and enable smaller cross-sections of beams. Adding expanded polystyrene to replace a portion of fine aggregate is a widely accepted solution to decrease the weight of concrete. However, lightweight expanded polystyrene concrete (EPSC) has poor mechanical properties and brittleness, limiting its application to non-bearing structures and thermal isolation. Glass fiber reinforcement is a promising solution to improve the mechanical properties of lightweight expanded polystyrene concrete. This study investigates the effect of glass fiber content on the mechanical properties of lightweight expanded polystyrene concrete. To investigate the impact of glass fiber on the mechanical properties of concrete, various volume percentages of glass fiber were incorporated into the mixture. The compressive and tensile strengths of the concrete were measured and compared for each percentage of glass fiber added. The results showed that the addition of glass fiber significantly reduced workability without causing a significant impact on volume density and compressive strength The study concludes that glass fiber reinforcement is a promising solution to improve the flexural strength of lightweight expanded polystyrene concrete and make it suitable for load-bearing applications in construction.