Determination of midspan deflection by means of crack opening in steel fiber-reinforced cementitious composite (SFRCC) beams

Abstract

Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (FRC) toughness parameters, crucial for structural design, can be obtained either by using load–deflection or load–crack opening displacement(COD) relationships. Therefore, determination of midspan-deflection under a given crack width is important in terms of flexural toughness characterization. This research is aimed at determining the relationship between midspan deflection and COD, depending on beam-thickness/fiber length(t/fL) ratio and fiber aspect ratio(d/fL). In this study, load–deflection and load–COD curves from 4-point flexural tests were evaluated in detail to figure out a relationship between the midspan deflections and crack openings. Proposed relationships were verified with the findings from literature and good results were obtained. © 2019 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.