Electromagnetic shielding and absorption properties of fiber reinforced cementitious composites

In order to investigate the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (SE) and absorbing properties of fiber reinforced concrete, steel fiber, carbon fiber and synthetic polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber reinforced concrete were researched. The results show that with the increase of fiber volume fraction, the SE and trend of frequency change of corresponding fiber reinforced concrete are enhanced. When the volume content of steel fiber is 3%, the SE of concrete is above 50 dB and its frequency is above 1.8 GHz. Moreover, in the range of 8-18 GHz, steel fiber, carbon fiber and PVA fiber all can improve the microwave absorption properties of concrete. The concrete with 0.5% carbon fiber can achieve the best absorbing property, the minimum reflectivity is about -7 dB; while steel fiber optimal volume fraction is 2%. The reflectivity curve of PVA fiber reinforced concrete fluctuates with the frequency, and the minimum value of the reflectivity is below -10 dB. The results show that fiber reinforced concrete could be used as EMI(electromagnetic interference) prevention buildings by attenuating and reflecting electromagnetic wave energy.     

Freeze-thaw Durability of Recycled Aggregate Concrete:An Overview

The characteristics of surface appearances,mass loss,relative dynamic modulus of elasticity and strength loss of different recycled aggregate concretes(RAC) exposed to freeze-thaw cycles were analyzed.It was found that the freeze-thaw resistance of RAC could be determined by the recycled aggregate compositions and admixtures.Both the saturation degree and the air void structure were the key factors influencing the freeze-thaw damage on concrete.Some major proposed freeze-thaw deterioration mechanisms were utilized to interpret the freeze-thaw damage on recycled aggregate concrete.Meanwhile,some potential measures to enhance the freeze-thaw resistance of concrete were summarized and discussed.     

Flexural Strength and Behavior of Polypropylene Fiber Reinforced Concrete Beams

The strength and deformation characteristics of polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete ( PFRC) beams were investigated by four-point bending procedures in this paper. Two kinds of polypropylene fibers with different fiber contents (0.2% , 0.5% , 1.0% and 1.5% ) by volume were used in, the beam, which measured 100 × 100 mm with a span of 300 mm. It was found that the strength of the reinforced concrete beams was significantly decreased, whereas the flexural toughness was improved, compared to those unreinforced concrete beams. Geometry properties and volume contents of polypropylene fiber were considered to be important factors for improving the flexural toughness. Moreover, the composite mechanism between polypropylene fiber and concrete was analyzed and discussed.     

Behavior of high water-cement ratio concrete under biaxial compression after freeze-thaw cycles

The high water-cement ratio concrete specimens under biaxial compression that completed in a triaxial testing machine were experimentally studied. Strength and deformations of plain concrete specimens in two loading direction under biaxial compression with stress ratio of a=0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0 were obtained after 0, 25, 50 cycles of freeze-thaw. Influences of freeze-thaw cycles and stress ratio on the peak stress and deformation of this point were analyzed according to the experimental results, Based on the test data, the failure criterion expressed in terms of principal stress after different cycles of freeze-thaw, and the failure criterion with consideration of the influence of freeze-thaw cycle and stress ratio were proposed respectively.     

Freeze-thaw bond properties of new-old concrete

Using composite cubic specimens of new-old concrete,the bond splitting tensile strength and failure mechanism for the interface of new-old concrete in saturating state were explored when exposed to freeze-thaw cycling. Specimens were experienced for 0,25,50,75,100 and 125 freezing cycles. The roughness and adhesion agent including cement paste,cement mortar and cement paste with 10 percent of UEA expanding agent were also investigated. The test results indicate that the bond splitting tensile strength decreases with increased numbers of freezing-and-thawing cycles. The roughness and adhesion agent have different effects on the bond strength.     

Durability of concrete subjected to the combined actions of flexural stress,freeze-thaw cycles and bittern solutions

Freeze-thaw durabilities of three types of concretesnormal portland cement concrete （OPC）, high strength concrete （HSC） and steel fiber reinforced high strength concrete （SFRHSC） were systemically investigated under the attacks of chemical solution, and combination of external flexural stress and chemical solution. Four kinds of bitterns from salt lakes in Sinkiang, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia and Tibet provinces of China were used as chemical attack solutions. The relative dynamic modulus （RDM） was used as an index for evaluating the damage degree during the course of chemical attack and stress corrosion. The experimental results show that the freeze-thaw durability of concrete is visibly reduced in the present of the flexural stress, i e, stress accelerates the damage process. In order to quantify the stress accelerated effect, a stress accelerating coefficient was proposed. The stress accelerating coefficient is closely related with the types of bitterns and the numbers of freeze-thaw cycles is. The more numbers of freeze-thaw cycles is, the greater the stress accelerating coefficient for various concretes will be. In addition, there also exists a critical ratio of external stress to the maximum flexural stress. If the stress ratio exceeds the critical one, the freeze-thaw durability of various concretes will be greatly decreased compared to the responding concretes without applied stress. The critical stress ratio of OPC, HSC and SFRHSC is 0.30, 0.40 and 0.40, respectively, indicating that HSC and SFRHSC have advantages over OPC and are suitable to use in the bittern erosion regions.     

Impact properties of engineered cementitious composites with high volume fly ash using SHPB test

The split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) testing with diameter 40 mm was used to investigate the dynamic mechanical properties of engineered cementitious composites (ECCs) with different fly ash content. The basic properties including deformation, energy absorption capacity, strain-stress relationship and failure patterns were discussed. The ECCs showed strain-rate dependency and kept better plastic flow during impact process compared with reactive powder concrete (RPC) and concrete, but the critical compressive strength was lower than that of RPC and concrete. The bridging effect of PVA fiber and addition of fly ash can significantly improve the deformation and energy absorption capacities of ECCs. With the increase of fly ash content in ECCs, the static and dynamic compressive strength lowered and the dynamic increase factor enhanced. Therefore, to meet different engineering needs, the content of fly ash can be an important index to control the static and dynamic mechanical properties of ECCs.     

Experimental Study on Electric Properties of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Concrete

According to the phenomenon that the physical properties have,a great effect on the electric capability of carbon fiber reinforced concrete, the author researched the relationship between DC resistance of carbon fiber reinforced concrete and curing age using the two-probe method. Then the effect of insulative area, location and quantity on DC resistance of carbon fiber reinforced concrete was investigated at different curing age with analysis of hydration. The results suggest that DC resistance increases greatly with its curing age, which illustrates the relationship like Gaussian curve. In every curing ages the electric capability of carbon fiber reinforced concrete weakenes with the increase of insulative area. In same curing ages, section and insulative area, the more the quantity of insulation, the stronger the conductibility. The insulative location in optimal position can only result in optimal conductibility.     

Deterioration mechanism of sulfate attack on concrete under freeze-thaw cycles

The experiments of concrete attacked by sulfate solution under freeze-thaw cycles were investigated. The sulfate solution includes two types of 5% Na2SO4 and 5% MgSO4. Through the experiment, microstructural analyses such as SEM, XRD and TGA measurements were performed on the selected samples after freeze-thaw cycles. The corrosion products of the concrete were distinguished and quantitatively compared by the thermal analysis. Besides, the damage mechanism considering the dynamic modulus of elastically of concrete under the coupling effect was also investigated. The experimental results show that, under the action of freeze-thaw cycles and sulfate attack, the main attack products in concrete are ettringite and gypsum. The corrosion products exposed to MgSO4 solution are more than those to Na2SO4 solution. Furthermore, the content of gypsum in concrete is less than that of ettringite in test, and some of gypsum can be observed only after a certain corrosion extent. It is also shown that MgSO4 solution has a promoting effect to the damage of concrete under freeze-thaw cycles. Whereas for Na：SO4 solution, the damage of concrete has restrained before 300 freeze-thaw cycles, but the sulfate attack accelerates the deterioration process in its further test period.     

The Mechanical Properties of Polypropylene Fiber Reinforced Concrete

The compressive, shear strengths and abrasion-erosion resistance as well as flexural properties of two polypropyenc fiber reinforced concretes and the comparison with a steel fiber reinforced concrete were reported. The exprimental results show that a low content of polypropylene fiber (0.91 kg/m^3 of concrete ) slightly decreases the compressive and shear strengths, and appreciably increased the flexural strength, but obviously enhances the toughness index and fracture energy for the concrete with the same mix proportion, coasequently it plays a role of anti-cracking and improving toughness in concrete. Moreover, the polypropylene mesh fiber is better than the polypropylene monofilament fiber in improving flexaral strength and toughness of concrete, but the types of polypropylene fibers are inferior to steel fiber. All the polypropylene and steel fibers have no great beneficial effect on the abrasion-erosion resistance of concrete.     

Durability of lining concrete of subsea tunnel under combined action of freeze-thaw cycle and carbonation

Through the fast freeze-thaw cycle test,accelerated carbonation test,and natural carbonation test,the durability performance of lining concrete under combined action of freeze-thaw cycle and carbonation were studied.The experimental results indicate that freeze-thaw cycle apparently accelerates the process of concrete carbonation and carbonation deteriorates the freeze resistance of concrete.Under the combined action of freeze-thaw cycle and carbonation,the durability of lining concrete decreases.The carbonation depth of lining concrete at tunnel openings under freeze-thaw cycles and tunnel condition was predicted.For the high performance concrete with proposed mix ratio,the lining concrete tends to be unsafe because predicted carbonation depth exceeds the thickness of reinforced concrete protective coating.Adopting other measurements simultaneously to improve the durability of lining concrete at the tunnel openings is essential.     

Mechanical Properties of Reactive Powder Concretes Produced Using Pumice Powder

We examined the applicability of the pumice aggregate on the concrete formed by considering the reactive powder concrete mixture ratios, for the rigid superstructure concrete road pavement and building construction. The natural pumice aggregate in fibrous and non-fibrous concrete samples was used in the production of concrete by fracturing in 0.1-0.6 mm dimensions in rotor mill. The concreted formed in this way is named after the pumice powder concrete(PPC). The PPC samples produced were taken 7 days as 20 ℃ standard water cure, 28 days as 20 ℃ standard cure and 9 different types of combined cures. The combined cures were applied different temperatures in different durations. PPC samples were subjected to some pressure and flexural tests at the end of the standard water and combined cures. The highest compressive and flexural strengths of PPC samples were obtained after the combined cures: 3 days in 20 ℃ as standard water curing + 2 days in 180 ℃ in drying-oven. The highest compressive strength of PPC samples without any fiber was found to be 47.27 MPa, as for the highest flexural strength, it is found to be 5.23 MPa, in the end of the study. The highest compressive strength of fibrous PPC samples was 51.12 MPa, while flexural strength was 6.57 MPa.     

Effect of Mineral Admixture on Fracture Behavior of Concrete under Freeze-Thaw Cycles

According to GBJ82-85 test method for frost resistance of concrete,four-point bending tests were used to examine the effects of mineral admixture(silica fume and fly ash)on fracture toughness,fracture energy and dynamic elastic modulus of concrete subjected to rapid freeze-thaw cycles The microstructure of the concrete was also analyzed.The results show that with the increase of the number of freeze-thaw cycles,the fracture toughness of concrete,and the loss of fracture energy as well as the l0ss of relative dynamic elastic modulus showed a downward trend.The air content of fresh concrete is the most important parameter to improve frost resistance of concrete There existed distinct difference for silica fume and fly ash to enhance fracture performance and microstructure of the concrete under freeze-thaw cycles.The l0ss of fracture energy and the loss of relative dynamic elastic modulus kept a good linear relationship.     

Concrete damage and neutralization under coupling effect of carbonation and freeze-thaw cycles

Simulating the coupling effect brought by freeze-thaw and carbonation environment,we experimentally investigated concrete durability,the variation characteristics of both concrete dynamic elastic modulus,and its neutralization depth.The influences imposed by carbonation on the freeze-thaw damage of concrete was studied as well and vise versa so as to shed light on the influencing mechanism together with the mutual interaction between them.The experimental results show that the damage caused by the coupling effect of freeze-thaw and carbonation on concrete is severer than any single effect of them two could bring.This provides certain theoretical references and paves down foundations for the further study in concrete durability related by the coupling environmental effect.     

Experimental study on mechanical behaviors of pseudo-ductile cementitious composites under biaxial compression

Experimental investigation was conducted to characterize the responses of pseudo-ductile cementitious composites (PDCCs) when subjected to uniaxial and biaxial compression.The PDCCs is a class of fiber reinforced cementitious composites with ultra-high ductility by using a low volume fraction (2%) of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber.Two different strength grades of PDCC were examined with cubic specimen size of 100 mm in the tests.The specimens were loaded with a servo-hydraulic jack at different stress ratios.The principle stresses and strains of the specimens were recorded,and the failure modes with various stress states were examined.The test results indicated that the ultimate strength of PDCCs increased due to the lateral confinement in the other principal stress direction,and the maximum ultimate strength occurred at the biaxial stress ratio of 0.25,which was very different from common concrete material.For the PDCC specimens,the biaxial strength may be lower than the uniaxial strength when subjected to biaxial compression with the stress ratio of 1.0,and the failure mode showed a shear-type failure because of the bridging effect of fibers.Finally,a failure criterion was proposed for PDCCs under biaxial compression.     

Brine-freeze-thaw Durability and Crack Density Model of Concrete in Salt Lake Region

The brine-freeze-thaw durability (defined as the durability under freeze-thaw cycles in Qinghai salt lake brine) of concrete (ordinary Portland cement concrete (OPC),high performance concrete (HPC-a),high performance concrete with steel fiber (HPC-b),and high performance concrete with high Young’s modulus polyethylene fiber (HPC-c)) was systematically investigated by the relative dynamic elastic modulus,the relative mass,the appearance,the scanning electron microscopy,and the X-ray diffraction.In addition,the low-temperature physical and chemical corrosion mechanism and a crack density model after the modified relative dynamic elastic modulus being taken into consideration were proposed.The results show that the deterioration of OPC is the severest,followed by HPC-a,HPC-c and HPC-b.The admixture or the fiber is mixed into concrete,which can improve the brine-freeze-thaw durability of concrete.The critical mass growth of the failure of concrete is 3.7%.The cause of the deterioration of concrete under the brine-freeze-thaw cycles is physical and chemical corrosion,not freezing and thawing.The crack density model can effectively describe the deterioration evolution of concrete.     

Characteristics of Smart Concrete with Fiber Optical Bragg Grating Sensor

Based on the adrantages of the fiber Bragg grating sensing technology, this paper presents a principle of a novel smart corwrete with fiber optical Bragg grating sensor, analyses the theory and characteristics,illustrates the key technology and method to make the fiber Bragg grating sensor for the smart concrete, and proves the feasibility with experiments.The results inlicate that the smart concrete with fiber Bragg grating sensors is feasible in the structure monitoring and damage diagnosing in the long run.     

Charactersitics of Stress-strain Curve of High Strength Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete under Uniaxial Tension

A whole of 110 specimens divided into 22 groups were tested with varying the volume fraction of steel fibers and the matrix strength of these specimens. The stress-strain behaviors of four types of steel fiber reinforced concrete （SFRC） under uniaxial tension were studied experimentally. When the matrix strength and the fiber content increase, the tensile stress and tensile strain vary differently according to the fiber type. The mechanisms of reinforcing effect for different types of fiber were analyzed and the stress-strain curves of the specimens were plotted. Some experimental factors for stress or strain of SFRC were given. A tensile toughness modulus Re0.5 was introduced to evaluate the toughness characters of SFRC under uniaxial tension. Moreover, the formula of the tensile stress-strain curve of SFRC was regressed. The theoretical curve and the experimental ones fit well, which can be used for references in construction.     

Durability of Concrete under Multi-damage Action

Several different experiments, including freezing-thawing,freezing-thawmg drying-wetting,and drying-wetting, in salt solution and in water respectiwely, were designed to determine the durability of concrete. The durability damage features of concrete in the above experiments were studied. It is demonstrated that the demage extent of concrete under.freezing-tluacing and freezing-thawing doing-wetting in salt solution is larger than that in water. Thus,freezing-thawing and freezing-thawing doing-wetting in salt solution are stricter and more effeetive methods to evaluate the durhility of concrete in salt-existing envirorunent in cold regions. The damage extent of concrete under freezing-thawing drying-wetting shows an ultra-superposition effect. The order of concrete durability deterioration degree in these experiments is determined. It shows that effects of multi-demulge factors are greater than those of single-damage factor.     

SFRC subjected to domestic sewage and sustained load

The article aimed to study the durability of steel fiber reinforced concrete under the coupled sewage-loading according to compressive strength,flexural strength,compressive strength corrosion coefficient,flexural strength corrosion coefficient,compressive strength balance coefficient,flexural strength balance coefficient.Through the homemade load frame applied to design specimens,the pre-loading level are equivalent the damage intensity of 0%,10%,30% and 50% four different ways.The experimental results show that the performance of concrete down gradually and sustaining load aggravated the degree of domestic sewage attacking concrete after six month;under different stress states,the more loading levels,the more serious domestic sewage attacked the steel fiber reinforced concrete.It is proved that the concrete damage can be inhibited by adding the steel fiber,when steel fiber volume fraction is 1.0%,the corrosion resistance of concrete is best.