Dosage Optimization of Polypropylene Fiber for Strength Enhancement of Cementitious Composites
Abstract
"Concrete is the most commonly used materials for construction in Qatar as well as in
the world. Exposure to sever environmental conditions causes physical deterioration
of concrete structures and significantly affect the concrete’s strengths and modulus
of elasticity. In the last decades, many improvements had been made in concrete
technology. Most of these improvements focused on the weak point of concrete, which
is tensile strength enhancement. One possible method to improve the tensile strength
of cementitious composites is incorporation of fibers in the mix. Polypropylene fiber
is widely used for this purpose due to their corrosion resistance and relatively low
cost. Polypropylene fibers are usually incorporated in cement mortar to control cracks
propagation thus enhance its tensile and flexural properties. This research focuses on
Polypropylene fiber dosage optimization for strength enhancement of cementitious
composites. Four dosages of Polypropylene microfibers; 0%, 0.05%, 0.1%, and 0.2%
by weight of cement; were added into cement mortar to explore the optimum dosage
that can lead to big enhancement in mechanical strengths of cementitious composites.
The mechanical strengths were investigated in terms of compressive and flexural
strengths. The results revealed that adding small amount of Polypropylene microfibers
could enhance the compressive and flexural strengths of cement mortar. The maximum
enhancement in the compressive and flexural strengths was equal to 26% and 19% and
was achieved in the case of adding 0.1% and 0.05% by weight of cement, respectively."
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