Effect of silica fume on strength of glass fiber incorporated concrete.

The construction industry is going through a rapid phase of improvement on various aspects one of which is enhancing the strength of concrete by utilizing various natural fibers and mineral admixture available. This project revolves around the study on strength characteristics of concrete reinforced with glass fiber and also using silica fume as a partial replacement for fine aggregate in conventional concrete. The performance of the concrete against compression, tension and flexure is studied in detailed and discussed. The glass fiber are mixed in concrete as an additive by 0.8 % to the overall weight of concrete and 25% of cement is replaced with silica fume to improve the overall performance and strength of concrete. The usage of glass fiber in concrete has lead to reduction in the development of micro cracks at the initial service period and the use of silica fume seems to increase the strength and overall structural rigidity of the structures. By reinforcing glass fiber in concrete and replacing the cement with silica fume has enhanced the strength by improving the mechanical properties of the concrete compared with conventional concrete. The mix ratio suitable to produce a concrete specimen of compressive strength 30N/mm2 is taken as the control specimen. The test result indicates that using silica fume in glass fiber reinforced concrete has enhanced the strength by more 20% when compared to normal concrete. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]