Improving Crack Control and Ductility of RC Beams Using Steel Fibres under Cyclic Loading

To be effective in seismic event, reinforced concrete (RC) structures should be sufficiently ductile, energy dissipating and crack controlling in order to withstand cyclic stress. The conventional concrete is easily losing its stiffness when subjected to earthquakes and has poor post cracking property due to its low tensile strength and brittle nature. The experimental examination into the cyclic flexural performance of beams made of steel fibre reinforced concrete (SFRC) and put through simulated seismic loading is presented in this paper. A beam specimen with and without Steel fibres at optimized volume fraction (0.75%) was created using M30 grade concrete. The beams were tested under reverse cyclic loading using a two-point loading system to evaluate important performance metrics such as load-deflection response, crack behavior, energy absorption, ductility and stiffness degradation. The results reveal the structural performance of SFRC beams is significantly better than that of the regular RC beam. This rise was due to the initial crack load and the ultimate load capacity, which accounted for approximately half of this rise. Further, the energy absorption capacity of SFRC beams was increased by 40-60% and the ductility was increased by 25-50%. The study results indicate that steel fibre reinforcement concrete (SFRC) provides excellent seismic resistance to concrete beams, which contributes to the advantages of reliability and efficiency in maintaining the structures' ability to withstand earthquakes.