Studies on effect of steel fiber and coarse aggregate on fracture properties of self compacting concrete using wedge splitting test

Abstract

Purpose Fracture properties depend on the type of material, method of testing and type of specimen. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate fracture properties by adopting a stable test method, i.e., wedge split test. Design/methodology/approach Coarse aggregate of three different sizes (20 mm, 16 mm and 12.5 mm), three ratios of coarse aggregate, fine aggregate (CA:FA) (50:50, 45:55, 40:60), presence of steel fibers, and specimens without and with guide notch were chosen as parameters of the study. Findings Load-crack mouth opening displacement curves indicate that for both fibrous and non-fibrous mixes, higher volume of aggregate and higher size of coarse aggregate have high fracture energy. Originality/value For all volumes of coarse aggregate, it was noticed that specimens with 12.5 mm aggregate size achieved highest peak load and abrupt drop post-peak. The decrease in coarseness of internal structure of concrete (λ) resulted in the increase of fracture energy.