Flexural impact response of textile reinforced inorganic phosphate cement composites (TRC)

This work presents the characterisation of the local low velocity impact behaviour of a high-performance fibre reinforced cementitious composite (HPFRCC) made of phosphate cement and different types of E-glass textile reinforcements. The so called "energy profiling method" that was used for quantitative characterisation is adopted from Liu et al. (2004) who introduced this methodology on polymer matrix composites (PMC). A series of plates reinforced with chopped strand E-glass fibre mats (fibre volume fraction of 24%) was impacted during drop weight tests, showing that this methodology is as well applicable to textile reinforced cementitious composites. Further, the effects of impactor size and plate thickness were investigated experimentally, and finally the obtained results were compared to literature data for polymer matrix composites. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Textile Reinforced Cement Composites: New Insights in Structural and Material Engineering

This Special Issue presents the latest advances in the field of Textile-Reinforced Cement Composites, including Textile-Reinforced Concrete (TRC), Textile-Reinforced Mortar (TRM), Fabric-Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM), etc. These composite materials distinguish themselves from other fibre-reinforced concrete materials by their strain-hardening behaviour under tensile loading. This Special Issue is composed of 14 papers covering new insights in structural and material engineering. The papers include investigations on the level of the fibre reinforcement system as well as on the level of the composites, investigating their impact and fatigue behaviour, durability and fire behaviour. Both the strengthening of existing structures and the development of new structural systems such as lightweight sandwich systems are presented, and analysis and design methods are discussed. This Special Issue demonstrates the broadness and intensity of the ongoing advancements in the field of Textile-Reinforced Cement composites and the importance of several future research directions

Editorial on Special Issue “Textile-Reinforced Cement Composites: New Insights into Structural and Material Engineering”

This special issue presents the latest advances in the field of Textile-Reinforced Cement Composites, including Textile-Reinforced Concrete (TRC), Textile-Reinforced Mortar (TRM), Fabric-Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM), etc. These composite materials distinguish themselves from other fibre reinforced concrete materials by their strain-hardening behaviour under tensile loading. This Special Issue is composed of 14 papers covering new insights in structural and material engineering. The papers include investigations on the level of the fibre reinforcement system as well as on the level of the composites, investigating their impact and fatigue behaviour, durability and fire behaviour. Both strengthening of existing structures and development of new structural systems such as lightweight sandwich systems are presented, and analysis and design methods are discussed. This Special Issue demonstrates the broadness and intensity of the ongoing advancements in the field of Textile-Reinforced Cement composites and the importance of several future research directions

Form-finding and Structural Optimisation

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Shape optimization of small span textile reinforced cementitious composite shells

p. 1755-1766The property of concrete to be poured into any shape and harden at ambient temperatures makes it the most widely-used material for shells. Using this traditionally brittle material in shells restricts their forms to mostly compression shapes. Often steel reinforcement is still necessary to carry tensile forces occurring under different load combinations and to limit crack formation. A new composite material, textile reinforced cementitious composite (TRC), eliminates this restriction by combining the two most frequently used materials for structural curved shapes: textile and concrete. High volume fractions of flexible fibre textile reinforcement are inserted into the cementitious matrix to produce a material with both high tensile and compressive capacities. In this way, the steel reinforcement is replaced by the textile reinforcement and this flexible reinforcement eases the construction of the shell. More importantly with both compressive and tensile capacities in the shell material, a whole new vocabulary of load bearing structural surfaces is possible. The use of noncorrosive textile reinforcement has another great advantage over steel reinforcement in that the required concrete corrosion cover can be omitted. Consequently, shells have to be made only as thin as structurally necessary, which makes them an interesting option (especially for small span applications). In this paper, a methodology for numerical optimization of a 10 m span doubly curved TRC shell is presented. The optimization process aims at a shell shape that solely experiences tension and compression under selfweight. The initial continuous cylindrical shell shape is discretised into a grid shell and is optimized using a version of dynamic relaxation adapted for gravity loads. The resulting grid shape is then modelled as a continuous shell in the finite element analysis program Abaqus to study the influence of the boundary conditions on the load-carrying behaviour under load combinations of selfweight and asymmetric loads as required by Eurocode 1. The proposed methodology to achieve purely axially loaded shell shapes under gravity loads, produces very slender, force-efficient doubly-curved shells using the combined tensile and compressive capacity of TRC and opens a new realm of structural curved shapes.Tysmans, T.; Adriaenssens, S.; Wastiels, J. (2009). Shape optimization of small span textile reinforced cementitious composite shells. Editorial Universitat Politècnica de València. http://hdl.handle.net/10251/681

Form finding & structural optimization: A project-based course for graduate students in civil and architectural engineering

Nowadays, accreditation organizations for engineering programs put more and more emphasis on learning outcomes integrating multifaceted competences (scientific and technical skills, but also teamwork, communication, etc.). In this context, this paper discusses the relevance of project-based learning initiatives for teaching structural optimization, in the light of recent literature on the subject, as well as based on our experience in a course on form finding and structural optimization at the Brussels Faculty of Engineering. Although each project-based course has its specificities related to the teachers, their expertise, and the curriculum philosophy, some general guidelines are proposed, stressing the importance of a proper understanding of the mathematical and physical concepts, but also underlining the need to ensure sufficient room for creativity among the students. © 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.SCOPUS: ar.jinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

State-of-the-Art Review on Experimental Investigations of Textile-Reinforced Concrete Exposed to High Temperatures

Textile-reinforced concrete (TRC) is a promising composite material with enormous potential in structural applications because it offers the possibility to construct slender, lightweight, and robust elements. However, despite the good heat resistance of the inorganic matrices and the well-established knowledge on the high-temperature performance of the commonly used fibrous reinforcements, their application in TRC elements with very small thicknesses makes their effectiveness against thermal loads questionable. This paper presents a state-of-the-art review on the thermomechanical behavior of TRC, focusing on its mechanical performance both during and after exposure to high temperatures. The available knowledge from experimental investigations where TRC has been tested in thermomechanical conditions as a standalone material is compiled, and the results are compared. This comparative study identifies the key parameters that determine the mechanical response of TRC to increased temperatures, being the surface treatment of the textiles and the combination of thermal and mechanical loads. It is concluded that the uncoated carbon fibers are the most promising solution for a fire-safe TRC application. However, the knowledge gaps are still large, mainly due to the inconsistency of the testing methods and the stochastic behavior of phenomena related to heat treatment (such as spalling)

Preliminary High-Temperature Tests of Textile Reinforced Concrete (TRC)

Fire-testing of Textile Reinforced Concrete (TRC) is an interesting field in which quite limited research has been conducted so far. In this paper some preliminary tests are presented, where mortars used as binders are heated to 850 °C and their residual strength is tested, while the Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV) is also measured, before and after heating, and compared. Additionally, TRC specimens are subjected to flame exposure with a simple set-up and the residual strength is also tested by flexural tests. It is concluded that even with simple set-ups, interesting results can be obtained regarding the structural degradation of the material

Combining Continuous 3D Textiles and Synthetic Microfibres in Textile Reinforced Cements (TRCs): An Evaluation of the Tensile Response and Crack Formation

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Mix Optimisation and Bending Behaviour of Cement Composites Reinforced with 3D Textiles and Microfibres

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