Assessment of wheat fibre reinforced cementitious matrix

摘要

The technology of using synthetic fibres in reinforced concrete structures continues to mature. This research is intended to address the use of natural fibres derived from wheat straws for reinforcing cementitious matrix specimens. In order to study the properties of the cementitious matrix reinforced with wheat fibres, 156 specimens were tested in uniaxial compression and flexure. The compression tests were conducted on 2 in (50.8 mm) cubes, while the flexural tests were conducted on 1.58 × 1.58 × 6.30 in (40 × 40 × 160 mm) prisms. Several lengths of fibres and percentages in the range of 0.5% to 5% by volume of the specimens were tested in order to determine which would yield the highest load and stiffness. Specimens reinforced with polypropylene fibres were tested in order to benchmark the results. The average uniaxial compression load of the specimens reinforced with 0.5% long wheat fibres exceeded that of their counterparts reinforced with 0.5% polypropylene fibres by 15%.