Flexural Behavior of Polyvinyl Alcohol Fiber–Reinforced Ferrocement Cementitious Composite

Abstract

A new mechanical model of polyvinyl alcohol fiber–reinforced ferrocement cementitious composite (PVA-RFCC) was proposed with excellent integrated mechanical properties, which was reinforced with both PVA fiber and steel wire mesh (SWM). A series of experiments were conducted to study their mechanical properties, and a comparative analysis was also performed to evaluate their flexural toughness. The specimens of the PVA-RFCC thin plates were subjected to 4-point flexural experiments until their ultimate failure. The experimental results showed that the flexural properties of the PVA-RFCC specimens can be markedly improved compared with PVA-ECC (PVA-engineered cementitious composites) specimens. The highest increments in the initial stiffness, cracking strength, displacement ductility coefficient, and toughness of the PVA-RFCC specimens were improved by 62.4%, 174.7%, 251.0%, and 192.5%, respectively. The comparative analysis indicated that the method based on recent Chinese standards was suitable for the flexural toughness evaluation of the PVA-RFCC thin plates. A mechanical model of the PVA-RFCC thin plates was proposed. The PVA fibers had excellent prepeak behavior and the SWM had excellent postpeak behavior in the proposed mechanical model of the PVA-RFCC specimens.