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The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC

Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2018.

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Other Authors: Kearsley, Elsabe P.
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2019
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Kearsley, Elsabe P.
author_browse Kearsley, Elsabe P.
author_facet Kearsley, Elsabe P.
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2019 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2018.
format Thesis
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:37:44.604Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2019
publishDateRange 2019
publishDateSort 2019
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
record_format dspace
source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/71020 The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC Kearsley, Elsabe P. u11166348@tuks.co.za Bosman, Tiaan UCTD Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09 SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure Dissertation (MEng)--University of Pretoria, 2018. The addition of discontinuous discrete fibres to concrete has repeatedly been shown as an effective method to overcome the inherently brittle nature of concrete. The resulting composite has enhanced toughness and impact resistance and is broadly referred to as Fibre-Reinforced Concrete (FRC). Although the benefits of implementing FRC are evident, the high variability associated with FRC has frequently been cited as a characteristic stunting vast structural application of the material. This research is focussed on the spatial distribution of fibres and the way it affects flexural performance. A thorough understanding of the influence of fibre spatial distribution on composite performance is the first step in incorporating fibre distribution into material and structural design procedures and aids the pursuit of effective and optimal implementation of FRC in practice. The study was aimed at not only investigating the influence of fibre distribution on flexural performance but also evaluating the effect of fibre length and volume content on the fibre spatial characteristics. The experimental framework considered two hook-ended steel fibres with different lengths incorporated into a 50 MPa concrete mixture at volume contents ranging from 40 kg/m3 to 120 kg/m3. Flexural response was obtained using three-point bending tests on notched specimen, after which each specimen was cut adjacent to the crack plane and prepared for image analysis. An image processing algorithm was developed to automatically extract the fibre locations that were used to describe the fibre spatial characteristics. Spatial distribution was explored by evaluating the uniformity of fibres across a section, the inter-batch variability of fibre distribution, and the degree of clustering. A geometric descriptor of fibre spacing was defined using Voronoi diagrams generated from image data and employed in a unique approach developed for quantifying fibre spatial characteristics. An alternative approach was developed and used to compare the spatial metrics resulting from the Voronoi approach. The findings of the study highlight the role of fibre length and content on the spatial distribution of fibres and it is revealed that the sectional uniformity, inter-batch spatial variability, and degree of clustering are dependent on the number of fibres in the cross section. Furthermore, the results demonstrate the substantial influence of fibre distribution on the flexural performance of FRC. It is concluded that the variability in flexural strength reduces as the variation in fibre spatial distribution reduces and that extensive clustering has an adverse effect on the effective resistance provided by fibres. Civil Engineering MEng Unrestricted 2019-08-12T11:18:50Z 2019-08-12T11:18:50Z 2019/04/11 2018 Dissertation Bosman, T 2018, The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC, MEng Dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd <http://hdl.handle.net/2263/71020> A2019 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/71020 en © 2019 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title_full The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title_fullStr The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title_full_unstemmed The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title_short The influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of SFRC
title_sort influence of fibre spatial characteristics on the flexural performance of sfrc
topic UCTD
Engineering, built environment and information technology theses SDG-09
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/71020