Cumulative Effect of Crumb Rubber and Steel Fiber on the Flexural Toughness of Concrete

Abstract

Concrete properties, such as toughness and ductility, are enhanced to resist different impacts or blast loads. Rubberized concrete, which could be considered a green material, is produced from recycled waste tires grinded into different crumb rubber particle sizes and mixed with concrete. In this study, the behavior of rubberized steel fiber-reinforced concrete is investigated. Flexural performance of concrete beams (400×100×100 mm) manufactured from plain, steel fiber, crumb rubber and combination crumb rubber and steel fiber are also evaluated. Similarly, concrete slabs (500×500×50 mm) are also tested under flexural loading. Flexural performance of the SFRRC mixtures was significantly enhanced. The toughness and maximum deflection of specimens with rubber were considerably improved. Steel fiber/crumb rubber-reinforced concrete can be used for practical application, which requires further studies.