Performance of PET bottle fiber to enhance the mechanical behaviour of concrete

Abstract

Concrete is an indisputable material for the construction of various types of structures in the modern advancement of civil infrastructures. Concrete is strong in compression but weak in tension. To eliminate this problem, the introduction of fiber was brought in as an alternative to developing concrete in view of enhancing its tensile strength as well as improving its ductile property. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to investigate the mechanical behaviour of concrete reinforced with Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET-Bottle). Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) fibers of 40mm long, 1.5mm width and 0.6mm thickness were added to concrete in various percentages, such as 0.0%, 0.3%, 0.5% and 0.75% of fiber as volume fractions. Specific gravity and unit weight of hardened concrete was measured and it was found that both were reduced insignificantly when percentages of PET fibers were increased. A total of 24 number cylinder specimens (each size 150mm×300mm) were cast to investigate compressive and splitting tensile strength. Test results after 28 days of curing reveal that compressive and tensile strength were increased maximum values of about 23% and 20%, respectively for the addition of 0.50% PET fiber volume fractions. Finally, optimum dosages of PET fiber volume fractions; such as 0.47% to attain maximum compressive strength and 0.44% to attain maximum tensile strength were found for the mix.