Influence of flexural loading and chloride exposure on the fatigue behavior of high-performance lightweight engineered cementitious composites

The flexural fatigue behavior of high-performance lightweight engineered cementitious composites (HPLW-ECC) with tensile strength of 7.16 MPa and tensile strain capacity of 8.91% was investigated. The flexural repetitive loading demonstrated a pronounced influence on the fiber bridging capacity of HPLW-ECC. In contrast, the multiple cracking characteristics of HPLW-ECC under chloride exposure were maintained though its fatigue life decreased. The low-density HPLW-ECC exhibited high resistance to chloride penetration, and the fiber bridging capacity remained almost intact. Moreover, the flexural fatigue performance of HPLW-ECC possessing higher strength was comparable to that of conventional lightweight ECC. A fatigue life prediction model was proposed, and the model's failure probability was discussed based on the probabilistic reliability analyses. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.