Publications

Textile reinforced mortar (TRM) is mainly used for strengthening of existing structural members whereas, on the other hand Textile reinforced concrete (TRC) is a technology implied in construction of new members for enhancing the structural behaviour. Application of TRM on the tension zone of the reinforced concrete (RC) slabs to improve the flexural capacity has been investigated by many researchers in the past. However, the effectiveness of textile fabrics, used as internal reinforcement in the RC slab (TRC technology) needs to be studied. The paper, therefore, presents the experimental research conducted on three one-way RC slabs specimens reinforced using textile grid. An innovative Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) based carbon textile grid was used as internal reinforcement in combination with the steel bars. Two textile-reinforced RC slabs having one and two layers of textile grid (SRC + 1T and SRC + 2T respectively) and one reference slab (SRC) was fabricated to investigate the flexural behaviour under a four-point loading system. The internal textile reinforcement layer(s) was confirmed to be effective, particularly in terms of improving the cracking load, ductility, deformability and toughness. The material ductility of SRC + 1T and SRC + 2T slabs were increased by 41% and 44% compared to SRC slab. Also, the deformability ratio was found to be greater than 4, indicating a ductile failure of textile-reinforced slabs. Further, based on the load-deflection relation, moment-curvature curves were derived. Moreover, these curves were also developed using Eurocode two prediction model. The experimental and the predicted moment-curvature curves showed good agreement.

Abstract The use of nano clay to improve the qualities of construction materials and engineering applications has attracted a lot of discussion in recent years. This review article summarizes the influence of nano clay as a cement substitute and supplement on the performance of conventional and high-performance concrete. The addition of nano clay to high performance concrete revealed an increase in compressive and flexural strength, as well as durability attributes such as resistance to elevated temperatures and sulfate attack, while simultaneously decreasing porosity, permeability, and water absorption. This enhancement is a result of nano clay’s roles as nano reinforcements, nanofillers, nucleation sites, and reactive pozzolans, which promote hydration and increase material characteristics.

According to the authors' best information, the majority of research focuses on other waste materials, such as recycling industrial waste (glass, silica fume, marble and waste foundry sand), etc. However, some researchers suggest dune sand as an alternative material for concrete production, but knowledge is still scarce. Therefore, a comprehensive review is required on dune sand to evaluate its current progress as well as its effects on the strength and durability properties of concrete. The review presents detailed literature on dune sand in concrete. The important characteristics of concrete such as slump, compressive, flexural, cracking behaviors, density, water absorption and sulfate resistance were considered for analysis. Results indicate that dune sand can be used in concrete up to 40% without any negative effect on strength and durability. The negative impact of dune sand on strength and durability was due to poor grading and fineness, which restricts the complete (100%) substation of dune sand. Furthermore, a decrease in flowability was observed. Finally, the review highlights the research gap for future studies.

The journal retracts the article titled “A Study on the Properties of Geopolymer Concrete Modified with Nano Graphene Oxide” [...]

The application of textile reinforcement to the tension zone of the reinforced concrete slabs as a means to enhance flexural capacity has been investigated by researchers in the past. However, the effectiveness of adding short carbon fibers as internal reinforcement in the textile-reinforced concrete one-way slab needs to be studied. The paper presents the experimental research conducted on four full-scale (1500×500×50) mm one-way slabs. An innovative Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) textile grid was used as internal reinforcement in combination with short carbon fibers. The first one consists of fine-grained concrete and short carbon fibers. Two textile-reinforced RC slabs have eight layers of fabric (textile-reinforced concrete (TRC) 8 L) with two percentages of short carbon fiber (0.264% and 0.528%), and one reference textile-reinforced concrete slab without short carbon fiber was fabricated to investigate the flexural behavior under a four-point loading system. The findings indicate that TRC + short carbon fiber showed significantly improved flexural capacity, load-deflection, and load-concrete strain behaviors compared with TRC. The new TRC+ 0.264% short carbon fibers (SCF) and TRC+ 0.528%SCF improved the load-bearing capacity by about 24.19% and 31.56%, respectively, as compared with TRC. Also, the intensity of the crack pattern was measured to compare the ductility of TRC+ short carbon fiber to that of traditional TRC.

In this research, the effect of heat–cool cycles (HCCs) on high-strength concrete (HSC) containing steel fibres (SFs), polypropylene fibres (PPFs), and date palm fibres (DPFs), which were named fibrous high-strength concrete (FHSC), was studied. To produce FHSC, three doses of 0.2, 0.6, and 1 percent of each fibre were used. All samples were tested after 28 days of normal water curing and 270 days of exposure to HCCs (continuing the authors’ project and research published at 28 and 180 days). This entails heating for 2 days at 60 C in the oven and cooling for another 2 days at room temperature for 270 days. The experiment’s findings revealed that fibre reinforcement in concrete enhances its strength and durability. By incorporating the three types of fibres into high-strength concrete, with and without HCCs, the modulus of rupture was significantly increased. In both conditions, including with or without the implementation of HCCs, incorporating the three fibre types into the HSC showed a significant increase in toughness. As a result, natural date palm fibres can produce sustainable FHSC that can withstand harsh environmental conditions. Moreover, compared to the previous study conducted by the authors at 180 days, there is a slight severity in both the pattern of decrease and increase of the studied characteristics at 270 days caused by the effect of thermal cycles and fibres.