Reinforced fibre steel

Cracking of concrete is a major concern of any engineer. Extensive research & development in this field resulted in many inventions. This resulted in the introduction of steel fiber reinforcement. Steel fiber reinforcement makes the concrete tougher and more ductile. Many tests were conducted on this later. Comprehensive field examinations over three decades have established the fact that the addition of steel fibers to conventional plain or reinforced and pre-stressed concrete members at the time of mixing/production imparts strength, performance and durability of concrete. The weak matrix, when reinforced with steel fibers homogeneously distributed throughout its entire mass, renders the matrix to behave as composite material with properties appreciably different from conventional concrete. The orientation of (random) steel fibers assist in scheming the propagation of micro cracks present in the matrix. At the initial stages, this will result in an improvement in the overall cracking resistance of the matrix. This also helps engineers by bridging across even smaller cracks formed after the application of load on to the member, there by preventing their widening into major cracks. While steel fibers improve compressive strength of concrete, significant progress is accomplished in several other properties of the concrete.