Effect of Steel Fiber Type and Curing Regimen on the Mechanical Properties of Reactive Powder Concrete

Reactive powder concrete (RPC) can provide enhanced mechanical properties and durability compared to conventional concrete. RPC has been developed in this study using locally available materials. Six types of steel fibers and three curing regimens were considered to examine their effect on the mechanical properties of RPC. Steel fibers were incorporated by 1% and 2% of the total volume of mixtures. Generally, the experimental results showed that 1% steel fibers enhanced the compressive, flexural, and splitting tensile strengths by 23.6%, 65.1%, and 72.7%, respectively, compared to control mixtures (no fibers). On the other hand, the 2% of fibers improved the compressive, flexural, and tensile strengths by 39.2 %, 155.0%, and 191.7%, respectively. The curing regimen, which consisted of 2 days at 60°C and 3 days at 90°C, followed by 21 days of moist curing at 21°C, indicated the ultimate enhancement of the mechanical properties of RPC. Also, hooked fibers appeared to enhance flexural strength and tensile strength compared to other types of fibers.