Crack Growth Resistance of Fiber-Reinforced Concrete Under Drop-Weight Impact Loading

Abstract

This study conducted dynamic fracture studies on fiber reinforced cement-based composites. Contoured double-cantilevered beam specimens were subjected to one rate of quasi-static loading and three rates of impact loading by using a fully instrumented drop weight impact machine. Also investigated were steel and polypropylene fibers at two dosage rates, and an analytical scheme was developed to provide the inertial correction to measured loads and to obtain crack growth resistance curves under static and impact loading. The comparison between steel and polypropylene fibers indicated a superior performance of the steel fiber under quasi-static loading, but under impact loading, the polypropylene fiber appears to come up to the level of steel fiber.