Compressive Behaviour of Coconut Fibre (Cocos nucifera) Reinforced Concrete at Elevated Temperatures

Fire outbreaks in buildings have been a major concern in the world today. The integrity of concrete is usually questioned due to the fact that after these fire outbreaks the strength of the concrete is reduced considerably. Various methods have been adopted to improve the fire resistance property of concrete. This study focused on the use of coconut fibre to achieve this feat. In this study, varying percentages of treated and untreated coconut fibres were incorporated into concrete and the compressive strength was tested for both before heating and after heating. The percentages of replacement were 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1% fibre content by weight of cement. Concrete cubes that had 0% fibre served as control specimens. After subjecting these concrete cubes to 250 degrees C and 150 degrees C for a period of 2 h, the compressive strength increased when compared to the control. The compressive strength increased up to 0.5% replacement by 3.88%. Beyond 0.5% fibre, the compressive strength reduced. Concrete having coconut fibre that had been treated with water also exhibited the highest compressive strength of 28.71 N/mm(2). It is concluded that coconut fibres are a great material in improving the strength of concrete, even after it was exposed to a certain degree of elevated temperature.