Mechanical Properties of a 3D Printed SFRC Beam with Steel-Fiber-Distribution Adaptive to Tensile Stress (2023-06)¶

To maximize the reinforcement of steel fiber in the steel fiber reinforced cementitious composite (SFRC) simply supported beam subjected to concentrated load at the midspan, the steel fiber is distributed according to the magnitude and direction of the tensile stress at the section of the midspan, which is defined as the adaptively distributed steel fiber reinforced cementitious composite (DD-SFRC) beam. In the DD-SFRC specimens, the dosage of steel fiber increases with the magnitude of the tensile stress and the orientation of steel fibers is parallel to the direction of tensile stress. In the preparation of the DD-SFRC beams, the distribution density and orientation of steel fibers were controlled by 3D printing and magnetic field, respectively. The mechanical properties of the beam were investigated by three-point bending tests and compared with the beams with aligned (AD-SFRC) or random (RD-SFRC) steel fiber distribution. The results showed that the mechanical properties of the beam are significantly improved by the adaptive distribution of steel fibers.