Mechanical behavior of textile reinforced concrete with newly developed mineral-impregnated carbon fabrics submitted to elevated temperatures

Abstract

Mineral impregnations can be used to improve the bond of multifilament carbon yarns towards cementitious matrices, even at elevated temperatures. In this work, the effectiveness of Mineral-Impregnated Carbon Fibers (MCF) fabrics with a cement-based (C) and a geopolymer (GP) suspension was evaluated through direct tensile tests. The tensile mechanical behavior at room temperature and after exposure to elevated temperatures of TRCs with the C- and GP-MCF fabrics was investigated and compared to the response of a TRC with a commercially epoxy-coated (EP) carbon fabric. A DIC analysis was performed to evaluate the composites’ cracking pattern. The results showed that the TRC with MCF fabrics presented a strain-hardening behavior with a multiple-cracking pattern. While the mechanical response of the TRC with GP-MCF and EP carbon fabric was affected by the enhancement of temperature, the heating up to 300 °C did not significantly affect the mechanical performance of the TRC with C-MCF fabric.