Compression and Flexural Behavior of ECC Containing PVA Fibers

Research on Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC) is overwhelming owing to its wide structural applications that can serve multi-functional purposes in civil and environmental infrastructures. Compared to other high-performance fiber reinforced concrete, ECC yields superior tensile ductility and multiple cracking behaviors when subjected to tensile loadings even with low to moderate volume of fibers. This paper presents the flexural properties of ECC made of cement, an industrial by-product, such as ground granulated blast-furnace slags (GGBS), local silica sand, polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fiber, water, and superplasticizer (SP). Two series of ECC mixtures (ECC-G50 series and ECC-G60 series) and one control mixture were designed. The effect of two different fiber contents in volume fraction was investigated for the two series of ECC mixtures. The compression and flexural tests were conducted on ECC and control specimens after 28 days of curing. A compression test revealed that almost all ECC mixtures improved compressive strength between 20% to 30% compared to the control specimens. In addition, all ECC plate specimens demonstrated excellent strain-hardening states (i.e., displacement capacity at least ten times greater than the control specimens) and multiple fine-cracks failure modes after the three-point bending test. The increase in fiber content slightly reduced the compressive strength but enhanced the flexural behavior of the ECC-G50 series. However, this observation is not discovered in the ECC-G60 series. Outcomes of this research assist material scientists on the content of PVA fiber and GGBS used in making ECC.