Structural Cast-in-Place Application of Polyolefin Fiber-Reinforced Concrete in a Water Pipeline Supporting Elements

摘要

Research has shown that polyolefin-based macrofibers can meet the requirements of the standards to consider their postcracking contribution in the structural design of fiber-reinforced concrete. The main drawback of such material is the lack of experience and the dependence on a suitable fiber distribution along the pieces. In this study, a real application of polyolefin fiber-reinforced concrete is reported. Its use enabled a reduction of the overall material cost and a total substitution of the customary steel-bar reinforcement. Moreover, it allowed an improvement in the concrete pouring rate and completion deadlines along the pipeline. In order to assure that structural requirements were fulfilled with reliability, quality control was a key point in the construction works, and therefore is also described. The conclusions revealed a noteworthy reliable performance of the polyolefin fiber-reinforced concrete, with there being a remarkably limited scatter of the residual strengths and provision of trustworthiness for its use in possible future structural applications. (C) 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.