Rubberized concrete filled steel tube

Abstract

One of the solution to reduce tire waste is by incorporating rubber as fine aggregate replacement, producing a rubberized concrete. This type of concrete generally has lower compressive strength, however, could potentially be used as structural application due to its inherent ductility. This study explored the application of rubberized concrete filled steel tube (RCFST) as structural member. A review of available literature has indicated the lack of experimental data for RCFST. Hence, an experimental study was conducted for circular composite columns with different thicknesses, 2.75mm, 4mm and 5mm, where each were filled with (a) normal concrete and (b) rubberized concrete with 10% fine aggregate replacement. The behaviour of RCFST was studied in terms of strength and ductility under axial compression load. From material testing, it was found that the compressive strength of rubberized concrete was approximately 30% less than that of the normal concrete. However, the axial load capacity of RCFST was only 1.4% to 6.6% less than the control samples (CFST). It was also found that the RCFST possesses some ductility and could be used for structures undergoing vibrations and seismic loads. As the overall behaviour of RCFST is comparable with the control CFST, rubberized concrete has the potential to be used as a filler material in steel tube to form composite column.