Investigation on the Effect of Steel Fibers in Self Curing Concrete

Abstract

Concrete curing is one of the most critical process to obtain the desired concrete properties. The traditional method of curing is achieved by wetting the exposed surface and preventing concrete from losing moisture. However when the mineral admixtures are applied to concrete, the demand for curing water will be much greater than that in a ordinary Portland cement concrete. If this water is not readily available, it can result in significant autogenous deformation and cracking. In order to overcome these draw back the attention is focused on advanced technology in curing i.e., self-cuing concrete. Self-curing or internal curing is a technique in which no additional water is required to enhance the rate of hydration. These self-curing concretes are also weak in resisting tensile forces, but by incorporating fibers on self-curing concrete both the tensile strength as well as the durability can be increased. In this study, self-curing concrete is achieved by incorporating Polyethylene Glycol (PEG-400) at different dosage (0.5, 1, 1.5 and 2%) by weight of binder content of M40 grade of concrete. To its optimum dosage the hooked end steel fibres are added to this self-curing concrete at different percentage (0.5, 1, 1.5, and 2%) by volume of concrete. The optimum steel fibre content is then determined with respect to strength parameters. The strength properties of self-curing concrete with steel fibers is then compared to that of conventional concrete and self curing concrete.