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Investigation on Flexural Behavior of Conventionally Reinforced, Steel Fiber-Reinforced, and Post-tensioned Geopolymer Concrete Beams

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Abstract

A series of experiments were conducted to study the structural behavior of conventionally reinforced (GR-GPC), steel fiber-reinforced (SFR-GPC), and post-tensioned (PS-GPC) geopolymer concrete beams with geometrical similarities. The geopolymer concrete mixtures were prepared by using fly ash (FA) as a precursor. A mixture of sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate solution was used as an alkaline activator to prepare geopolymer specimens. All concrete specimens were cured at 65 °C in a specially fabricated hot air curing chamber that is an alternative to the conventional oven. The final mix for the beams was selected based on the substantial trial mix studies conducted by varying FA content and steel fiber volume fractions. The experimental investigations are confined to studying the flexural behavior under the two-point load testing. The investigated structural parameters are cracking load, ultimate load, deflections, stiffness, ductility ratio, and failure patterns of these beams. Few important conclusions were drawn based on the discussion and comparison of results. The performance of SFR-GPC and PS-GPC was found to be superior compared to conventionally reinforced GPC beams in all structural parameters investigated.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Bangalore Institute of Technology (BIT), Bangalore, India, for providing laboratory access for the conduction of necessary experiments.

Funding

The authors declare that no funds, grants, or other supports were received during the preparation of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560054, India

    Lakshmikanth Srinivasamurthy

  2. Technical Manager, Bureau Veritas (India) Pvt Ltd, Bengaluru, Karnataka, 560054, India

    Kumar Srinivasan

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, JSS Science &Technology University (SJCE), Mysore, 570017, India

    M. C. Nataraja

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  1. Lakshmikanth Srinivasamurthy
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Appendices

Appendix 1: Mix Design

The wet density of geopolymer concrete = 2400 kg/m3.

The ratio of sodium silicate to sodium hydroxide solution = 2.5.

Total water content (chosen) = 130 l/m3 and the water content in sodium silicate = 33.53%.

(Na2SiO3/NaOH) solution = 2.5.

Calculation of Total Alkaline Solution for the Given Water Content

Total water present in combined solution = water present in NaOH + water in Na2SiO3.

i.e., 130 = ((1000 × Xg)/1640) + (2.5 × Xg × 0.3353), where Xg is the mass of NaOH solution.

Xg = 89.77 kg/m3, therefore Na2SiO3 = 224.425 kg/m3

Total solid particulate = 2400 − (89.77 + 224.425) = 2085.81 kg/m3

If 27% fly ash is used, then fly ash = 2085.81 × 0.27 = 563.17 kg/m3

Total aggregate excluding to fly ash = 2085.81 − 563.17 = 1522.64 kg/m3

The proportion of coarse aggregate to fine aggregate based on the least void content.

Coarse aggregate = 0.56 × 1522.64 = 852.68 kg/m3

Fine aggregate = 0.44 × 1522.64 = 669.96 kg/m3

Polycarboxyl ether-based superplasticizers used with a dosage of 1–2%.

Appendix 2: Moment of Resistance and Post-tensioning Force

Moment of Resistance of Singly Reinforced GR Beam

$$\begin{aligned} M_{u} & = 0.87 \times f_{y} \times A_{st} \times d\left( {1 - \frac{{f_{y} }}{{f_{ck} }} \times \frac{{A_{st} }}{bd}} \right) \\ M_{u} & = 0.87 \times 415 \times 100.50 \times 176\left( {1 - \frac{415}{{20}} \times \frac{100.50}{{150 \times 176}}} \right) = 8.68 \times 10^{6} \;{\text{N}}\,{\text{mm}} \\ \end{aligned}$$

Post-tensioning Force for GR Beam

The load balancing concept is applied to equate the moment of resistance of the beam with the post-tensioning force. Assuming zero tensile stress at the bottom of the beam

$$\begin{aligned} & \left( {\frac{P}{A} + \frac{P \times e}{Z} = \frac{{M_{u} }}{Z}} \right) = \left( {\frac{P}{150 \times 200} + \frac{P \times 50}{{1 \times 10^{6} }} = \frac{{8.68 \times 10^{6} }}{{1 \times 10^{6} }}} \right) \\ & P = 105 \times 10^{3} \,{\text{N}} \\ \end{aligned}$$

3 No -7 mm ϕ tendons were used,

Force applied on each tendon = \(\frac{P}{3}\) = 35 kN.

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Srinivasamurthy, L., Nataraja, M.C. & Srinivasan, K. Investigation on Flexural Behavior of Conventionally Reinforced, Steel Fiber-Reinforced, and Post-tensioned Geopolymer Concrete Beams. J. Inst. Eng. India Ser. A 105, 129–150 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40030-023-00772-3

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