Effect of Fibres Utilized with Concrete
Fiber reinforced concrete is a composite material comprised of Portland cement, aggregate, and fibers. Normal unreinforced concrete is brittle with low tensile strength and strain capacity. The function of the irregular fiber distributed randomly is to fill the cracks in the composite. Fibers are generally utilized in concrete to manage the plastic shrinkage cracking and drying shrinkage cracking. They also lessen the permeability of concrete and therefore reduce the flow of water. Some types of fibers create greater impact, abrasion and shatter resistance in the concrete. Usually, fibers do not raise the flexural concrete strength. The quantity of fibers required for a concrete mix is normally determined as a percentage of the total volume of the composite materials. The fibers are bonded to the material, and allow the fiber reinforced concrete to withstand considerable stresses during the post-cracking stage. The actual effort of the fibers is to increase concrete toughness.
During recent years, steel fiber reinforced concrete has gradually advanced from a new, rather unproven material to one which has now attained acknowledgment in numerous engineering applications. Lately, it has become more frequent to substitute steel reinforcement with steel fiber reinforced concrete. The applications of steel fiber reinforced concrete have been varied and widespread, due to which it is difficult to categorize. The most common applications are tunnel linings, slabs, and airport pavements.
This special reinforcement is called Steel fiber and the resulting concrete is steel fiber reinforced concrete. This type of concrete is widely used in abrasion suspected wearing surface.
Steel fiber concrete flooring can provide superior resistance to minimize cracks in hardened concrete, as well as maximum resistance to withstand heavy loads, either dynamic or static. If you decide to use steel fiber concrete flooring, you can select to use a ‘joint-less floor’. Joint-less floors are floors that have minimal joints, providing spaces without joints as large as 40 or 50-meter span wide.
Steel fiber dosage will vary greatly upon the projects intended use, and the types of mesh being replaced. Common dosages are in the range between 20-30kg/m3 to 40-50kg/m3 for joint-less floors. Trowelling concrete will help to embed steel fibers into the concrete surface producing a better finish product. Steel fibers will enhance to crack resistance of the concrete, and they can also be used to replace or supplement structural reinforcement. It only can be done through a structural engineer and with proper guidance.