Experimental comparison of glass and steel fiber in concrete containing nano-montmorillonite

The application of fiber and nano to improve the performance of concrete is common in the construction industry. In this study, the glass and steel fibers were selected, and their performances were investigated in combination with nano-montmorillonite. The purpose of this paper is to use glass fibers instead of steel fibers with the same strength. For this purpose, the weight ratio of nano-montmorillonite to cement was varied from 0 to 2.7%, and the weight ratio of fibers to cement was varied from 0 to 4.5%. Compressive strength tests were performed at the ages of 7, 28, and 90 days, flexural strength and water absorption tests were performed at the ages of 28 days. Nano-montmorillonite has increased the compressive strength of steel fiber concrete by 8 percent and the flexural strength by 15 percent. The influence of nano-clay on the mechanical properties of glass fiber concrete is greater than that of steel fiber concrete. Nano-montmorillonite has increased the compressive strength of glass fiber concrete by 40 percent and the flexural strength by 19 percent. Comparison of the effect of Nano-montmorillonite on the behavior of glass fiber reinforced concrete and steel fiber reinforced concrete shows that nanoclay not only improves the strength of the concrete but also eliminates the strength reduction caused by increasing volume fraction of glass fiber. The compressive and flexural strength tests showed that the optimal amount of steel and glass fibers is 3 percent. The optimum amount of nano-montmorillonite is dependent on the type of fiber and experiment.