This paper reports the development of ductile fibre reinforced geopolymer composites (DFRGC) where the cement binder is replaced by fly ash based geopolymer binder. In this study, three types of fibres are considered namely steel and two types of polyvinyl…
This paper reports the development of ductile fibre reinforced geopolymer composites (DFRGC) where the cement binder is replaced by fly ash based geopolymer binder. In this study, three types of fibres are considered namely steel and two types of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibres having different diameters, lengths and elastic modulus. The fibres are used in mono as well as in hybrid forms in the development of DFRGC. Comparison is also made with its cement based counterpart the ductile fibre reinforced cement composites (DFRCC). The effects of two different sand sizes (1.18mm, and 0.6mm) and sand/binder ratios (0.5 and 0.75) on the deflection hardening and multiple cracking behaviours of DFRGC containing hybrid fibres are also evaluated and compared with DFRCC. Results reveal that the deflection hardening and multiple cracking behaviours can be achieved in DFRGC similar to that of cement based DFRCC. For a given sand size, fibre content and sand content, comparable ultimate flexural strength and deflection at peak load are observed in both DFRGC and DFRCC. The results also show that the hybrid steel-PVA fibre reinforced DFRGC exhibited better deflection hardening behaviour compared to its cement based counterpart. The proposed development of DFRGC exhibits a significant benefit over cement based system (DFRCC) as the former one is green in terms of no cement use.