| Abstract: |
Concrete is a material with wide use in construction industry but the low tensile strength and brittle behavior of this construction material restrict structural performance. The addition of steel fibers in concrete has been found to be an effective method to enhance mechanical properties of concrete. The experimental study aims to assess the behaviour of the steel fibre chips (which are produced by machining and lathe waste) on the properties of strength of M-25 grade, M-30 grade and M-35 grade concrete. The dosage of steel fiber chips used in the concrete was 0%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 1.5%, and 2.0% by volume of concrete. A comprehensive experimental study has been carried out to evaluate the compressive strength, split tensile strength, flexural strength at curing ages of 7, 14 and 28 days as per Indian Standard specifications on which 135 specimens were tested. The findings showed that the concrete with steel fibre chips addition showed considerable improvement in all mechanical properties of concrete as the most significant improvement is noted in the tensile and flexural properties. The best results were obtained at 1.5 % fibre content when the compressive strength was raised by around 13-15%, split tensile strength was raised by around 30-35% and flexural strength raised by around 39-45% over conventional concrete. The 1.5% fibre content and beyond, workability reduction, fibre clustering, and compaction problems caused marginal reduction in the strength. The authors show that steel fiber chips can provide an economical and sustainable alternative to commercially produced steel fibers, and can be used to achieve better structural performance, as well as beneficial utilization of the industrial waste in construction applications. |
