Experimental Study on Compressive and Flexural Performance of Lightweight Cement-Based Composites Reinforced with Hybrid Short Fibers

This paper aims to experimentally study the compressive and flexural characteristics of cement-based composites developed for fabricating thin, lightweight, and high-performance components of buildings. Expanded hollow glass particles with a 0.25-0.5 mm particle size were used as lightweight fillers. Hybrid fibers made of amorphous metallic (AM) and nylon fibers were used to reinforce the matrix with a total volume fraction of 1.5%. The primary test parameters included the expanded glass-to-binder (EG/B) ratio, the fiber volume content ratio, and the length of the nylon fibers in the hybrid system. The experimental results demonstrate that the EG/B ratio and the volume dosage of the nylon fibers exhibited insignificant effects on the compressive strength of the composites. Additionally, the utilization of nylon fibers with a longer length of 12 mm resulted in a slight compressive strength reduction of approximately 13% compared to that of the 6 mm nylon fibers. Further, the EG/G ratio exhibited an insignificant effect on the flexural behavior of lightweight cement-based composites in terms of their initial stiffness, strength, and ductility. Meanwhile, the increasing AM fiber volume fraction in the hybrid system from 0.25% to 0.5% and 1.0% improved flexural toughness by 42.8% and 57.2%, respectively. In addition, the nylon fiber length significantly affected the deformation capacity at the peak load and the residual strength in the post-peak stage.

Automated summary

This study aims to experimentally investigate the compressive and flexural characteristics of cement-based composites for lightweight building components. The addition of expanded hollow glass particles and hybrid fibers made of amorphous metallic and nylon fibers were used to enhance the properties of the composites. The experimental results show that the ratio of expanded glass-to-binder and the volume content of nylon fibers have little influence on the compressive strength. Additionally, the length of the nylon fibers affects the deformation capacity and residual strength.