Experimental and Numerical Modeling of Polypropylene Fiber Reinforced Concrete Notched Beam

The chapter delves into the experimental and numerical modeling of polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete, highlighting the significant improvements in tensile strength, flexural strength, toughness, and failure mode compared to plain concrete. The study focuses on a 1.25% addition of polypropylene fibers to 50 MPa concrete, using direct uniaxial tension tests and three-point bending notched beam tests to evaluate performance. The numerical simulations employ an in-house 3D-NLFEA package, utilizing a plasticity-fracture model to predict the behavior of the reinforced concrete. The results demonstrate that polypropylene fibers enhance the fracture energy and ductility of concrete, with a notable increase in peak load and mid-span displacement in notched beam tests. The chapter also discusses the challenges and methods for accurately modeling the tensile behavior and fracture energy of polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete, providing a detailed analysis of the stress-strain relationships and crack patterns observed in both experimental and numerical studies.