| This thesis presents the results from flexural fatigue testing on the latest generation of high volume coarse monofilament self-fibrillating Synthetic Fiber Reinforced Concrete (SnFRC) and hooked-end Steel Fiber Reinforced Concrete (SFRC).; In this thesis, the flexural fatigue evaluation has been completed on the plain concrete, the hooked-end steel fiber reinforced concrete at 0.5% volume addition, and the coarse monofilament self-fibrillating synthetic fiber reinforced concrete at 0.5% volume addition. The Modulus of Rupture (MOR) of each type of concrete was calculated using the ASTM C1018 standard. The procedures for the flexural fatigue evaluation were adopted from past research, using a non-reversed constant amplitude sinusoidal loading scheme.; The addition of either the hooked-end steel or coarse monofilament self-fibrillating synthetic fibers at 0.5% volume addition did increase the concrete MOR. When comparing the S-N curves, the steel and synthetic fiber specimens at 0.5% volume addition showed no improvement over that of the plain concrete.; This thesis provides an explanation of the differences observed and suggests that the prior research conclusions may have been misleading. The results are of great importance to the engineering community because designers have modified designs to structural elements based on the understanding that fiber reinforced concrete, in the fiber content range evaluated in this thesis, has a greater flexural fatigue life when compared to plain concrete. These results suggest that if structures were designed to take advantage of the anticipated flexural fatigue improvement, they would have a higher possibility of premature failure. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
