Effect of cracking localization on the structural ductility of normal strength and high strength reinforced concrete beams with steel fibers

This article presents a study of cracking localization in normal and high strength concrete beams that include steel fibers and the influence of this localization on their structural ductility. It is shown that for a given fiber type and content, as the reinforcement ratio ρ decreases, the cracking localization level increases. The effect of ρ on the level of cracking localization is more pronounced for low amounts of conventional reinforcement. This range of conventional reinforcement ratio is typical of slabs and especially for the commonly thicker protective slabs. Examination of the effect of the reinforcement ratio on the flexural ductility shows that there exists a transition point below which the ductility ratio decreases with ρ. This transition point is well above the minimum reinforcement ratio, which is required in design codes for plain reinforced concrete elements. Empirical analysis of the relation between cracking localization and ductility ratio shows that up to the same transition point, as cracking localization increases, the flexural ductility decreases. Findings of this study show that the positive effect of adding fibers on enhancing the impact resistance of slabs and beams is conflicted by their negative influence on reducing the structural ductility for low reinforcement ratios, which are typical of protective slabs.