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Article  in  Materials and Structures · March 2007

DOI: 10.1617/s11527-006-9129-5

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Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
DOI 10.1617/s11527-006-9129-5
ORIGINAL ARTICLE
The effect of steel fibres on the earthquake-resistant design
of reinforced concrete structures
G. Kotsovos · C. Zeris · M. Kotsovos
Received: 11 June 2005 / Accepted: 23 December 2005 / Published online: 21 September 2006

C RILEM 2006
Abstract The results of an experimental investiga-
tion are presented, studying the effect of fibres on the
behaviour of reinforced-concrete (RC) structures de-
signed in accordance with Eurocode 8. Twelve two-
span continuous RC columns, eight with and four with-
out steel fibres, were tested to failure, under constant
axial force and monotonic or cyclic lateral displace-
ment. Specimens without fibres suffered in some cases
premature brittle failure, reflecting the incompatibility
between post-peak concrete behaviour and the theoret-
ical model underlying RC design. It was shown that it is
possible to correct for this incompatibility through the
use of steel fibres, resulting in a behaviour that satis-
fied current performance requirements for strength and
ductility.
Résumé Les résultats d’une recherche expérimentale,
étudiant l influence des fibres métalliques sur le com-
portement des structures à béton armé conçues selon
Eurocode 8, sont présentées. Douze poteaux continues
G. Kotsovos
Research Assistant, National Technical University of
Athens, Zografou 15780, Greece
C. Zeris
Lecturer, National Technical University of Athens,
Zografou 15780, Greece
M. Kotsovos ()
Professor, National Technical University of Athens,
Zografou 15780, Greece
e-mail: mkotsov@central.ntua.gr
sur deux travées en béton armé, dont huit construits
en utilisant des fibres métalliques en acier et quatres
construits sans fibres, sont testés à ruine, sous effort ax-
ial et déplacement latérale monotonique ou cyclique.
Les spécimens sans fibres ont présenté, dans certains
cas, un mode de ruine prématuré et fragile reflétant
l’incompatibilité entre le comportement réel du béton
et le model théorique sur le quel sont bases les règles
de calcul des ouvrages en béton. Il a été montré qu’il
est possible de corriger cette incompatibilité en util-
isant des fibres métalliques en acier ayant pour résultat
un comportement qui répond aux exigences courantes
concernant la résistance et la ductilité.
Keywords Columns . Reinforced concrete .
Earthquake-resistant design . Steel fibres . Ductility
1. Introduction
In recent years there has been an increasing amount
of evidence indicating that current code methods for
the earthquake-resistant design of RC structures do not
always safeguard against brittle types of failure [1–7].
Such types of failure – unexpectedly suffered by the
vertical structural elements of RC buildings during the
1999 Athens earthquake [8] – prompted research which
not only reproduced them under controlled laboratory
conditions, but also demonstrated that their causes re-
late with the truss analogy (TA) which underlies RC
design [3–7].
176
Since its inception at the turning to the 20th century
[9, 10], not only has TA remained to date the back-
bone of RC design, with more refined versions of it
(in the form of the compression-field theory [11] and
strut-and-tie models [12]) becoming increasingly pop-
ular [13–15], but also its use has been extended for the
description of the physical state of RC structures at their
ultimate-limit state by incorporating concepts such as
strain softening [16], aggregate interlock [17, 18], and
dowel action [19]. And yet, these concepts are incom-
patible with fundamental properties of concrete at the
material level: strain-softening has been found to de-
scribe the interaction between specimen and testing de-
vice rather than the post-peak behaviour of concrete
[20–22]; on the other hand, aggregate interlock and
dowel action can only be effected through the shear-
ing movement of the crack faces and this is incompat-
ible with the cracking mechanism of concrete which
involves crack extension in the direction of the maxi-
mum principal compressive stress and opening in the
orthogonal direction [23, 24]. Moreover, tests on RC
beams have shown that the contribution of both aggre-
gate interlock [25–28] and dowel action [29] on the
beam load-carrying capacity is, if any, negligible.
Of the above concepts, only the need for concrete
to possess strain softening characteristics may be con-
sidered as a prerequisite for the application of TA. Be-
yond the peak-load level, concrete is severely cracked
and therefore its post-peak deformational characteris-
tics essentially describe the behaviour of cracked con-
crete. Of course, cracking may pre-exist in concrete
even before this is subjected to any load, but, under
load increasing up to near the peak-load level, crack-
ing occurs at the microscopic level; it is that near the
peak-load level that the cracks interconnect and be-
come visible and oriented [23, 24]. Henceforth, the
term “cracking” is used to describe “visible oriented
cracking”.
The web of an RC beam or column element at its ulti-
mate limit state suffers significant cracking and, hence,
modelling such an element as a truss requires cracked
concrete to have sufficient residual strength in order to
allow for the formation of the inclined struts of the truss
within the element web. Since concrete is characterised
by a complete and immediate loss of load-carrying ca-
pacity as soon as its peak-load level is attained [20–22],
such inclined struts can only form if it is possible to im-
part concrete strain softening characteristics causing a
gradual reduction of loss of load-carrying capacity.
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
To this end, the aim of the present work is to demon-
strate experimentally the need for concrete to possess
such strain-softening material characteristics, for a de-
sign method, based on TA, to yield solutions that satisfy
the performance requirements of current codes of prac-
tice. Three groups of two-span RC column elements
designed to TA as implemented by EC2 [14] are tested
to failure under the combined action of a constant ax-
ial force and monotonic or cyclic lateral displacement.
In two of the groups, the specimens are made of con-
crete containing steel fibres. The fibres are used in order
to impart concrete strain-softening characteristics [30],
which concrete of the specimens without fibres lacks.
The beneficial use of steel fibres in the monotonic be-
haviour of beams with slender or squat shear span char-
acteristics has been demonstrated already by several
researchers [31–34], who tested primarily statically
determinate beams under two point loading, with or
without steel fibres, up to 3% content by volume. Other
experimental parameters were the shear span to depth
ratio (with recent interest in the short beam range [34])
and, particularly, in the influence of the fibers in high-
strength concrete elements, where the brittleness of the
material is more pronounced [32–34].
The use of two-span elements herein is opted be-
cause experimental information on the behaviour of
indeterminate specimens is sparse compared to that ob-
tained from tests on determinate structural elements.
Moreover, the testing of indeterminate structural ele-
ments provides a more severe test of the validity of a
design method, since it allows the investigation of fea-
tures of the structural element behaviour such as, for
example, plastic hinge formation, strength and ductil-
ity characteristics of plastic hinges, the structural mod-
elling of points of inflection, etc., which cannot be in-
vestigated by testing structurally determinate elements.
2. Experimental details
The two-span linear structural elements investigated in
the programme are shown in Fig. 1. The figure also
shows the load arrangement and the corresponding
bending moment and shear force diagrams for the cases
of either only the cross section through C or both the
cross sections through B and C attaining their flexural
capacity. These diagrams are derived by linear-elastic
analysis in the former case, and by plastic analysis in the
latter. It is interesting to note in the figure that portion
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188 177

Fig. 1 Structural forms P2 3,07Mp

investigated. (a) Applied P1 2,67Mp
2.88 Mp
forces. (b) Bending moment 2.16 Mp B
N A C D N
(M) and shear force (V)
diagrams corresponding to 1.02 Mp
0.83 Mp l l l l
the formation of one 1.02 Mp
0.51 Mp
(indicated by the faint lines) 1200mm 975mm 975mm
and two (indicated by the 1.0 Mp (a)
dense lines) plastic hinges. M 0.61 Mp
(P1 , P2 : the forces
corresponding to the
formation of one and two, 1.0 Mp
respectively, plastic hinges; 2.05 Mp 1.0 Mp (b)
V 1.65 Mp
M p : the cross section
flexural capacity)
1.02 Mp
0.83 Mp
1.02 Mp
0.51 Mp

BC of the structural element is subjected to internal ac-
tions similar to those of a column. Similarly, portions
AB and CD are subjected to internal actions similar to
those of the portion of a column between its point of
inflection and one of its ends.
2.1. Loading path
strength of concrete, and b, h the cross-sectional dimen-
sions of the specimen), where it is maintained constant
during the subsequent application of P. The latter force
(applied at the middle of the larger span) increases to
failure either monotonically, or in a cyclic manner, in-
ducing progressively increasing displacements in re-
versing directions.

The specimens are subjected to sequential loading com-
prising axial (N) and transverse (P) components, as in-
dicated in Fig. 1. Following the test sequence, axial load
N is applied first and increases to a predefined value
equal to N ≈ 0.2 Nu = 0.2 fc bh (Nu being the maxi-
mum value of N that can be sustained by the specimen in
pure compression, fc the uniaxial cylinder compressive
2.2. Experimental set-up
The experimental arrangement used for the tests com-
prises two identical steel portal frames, with double-
T cross-section, bolted in parallel onto the laboratory
strong floor at distances equal to the element spans.
As shown in Fig. 2, the element is supported using two

Fig. 2 Experimental set-up 150 mm 975 mm 975 mm 150 mm

1200 mm
178 Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188

Fig. 3 Design details of

specimens with longitudinal D12-C30-M
steel reinforcement D12-C30-C

D8/50 D8/140 D8/50 D8/140 D8/50 D8/140 D8/50

200 800 400 575 400 575 200 100

100

D12-C60-M
D12-C60-C

D8/40 D8/140 D8/40 D8/140 D8/40 D8/140 D8/40

200 800 400 575 400 575 200

100 100

D14-FC30-M
D14-FC30-C

D6/30 D6/160 D6/30 D6/75 D6/30 D6/160 D6/30

200 800 400 575 400 575 200

100 100

D14-FC60-M
D14-FC60-C

D8/40 D6/160 D6/14 D6/95 D6/14 D6/160 D8/40

200 800 400 575 400 575 200 100

100

D16-FC30-M D16-FC60-M
D16-FC30-C D16-FC60-C

D8/40 D8/140 D8/40 D8/140 D8/40 D8/140 D8/40

200 720 560 415 560 495 200

100
100

external roller supports and an internal hinge support
that are positioned underneath the bottom flange of the
frame beams so that the reactions can act either upwards
or downwards depending on the sense of the trans-
verse point load. The transverse load is applied through
a double-stroke 500 kN hydraulic actuator (manufac-
tured by MTSTM ) fixed to the laboratory strong floor.
The axial-compressive force is applied concentrically
using an external prestressing force induced by high-
yield steel rods symmetrically arranged about the lon-
gitudinal axis of the element and acting on the hori-
zontal plane. The rods are anchored in two steel plates,
one of them being attached at one end face of the ele-
ment through a load-platen arrangement ensuring con-
centric loading, while the other is attached at the end
face of a 500 kN hydraulic actuator (manufactured by
EnerpacTM ) acting against another steel load-platen ar-
rangement attached to the other end of the specimen.
The actuator maintains the axial force constant with an
accuracy of ±1 kN.
The transverse load is displacement controlled. It
is interrupted at regular intervals, corresponding to

Table 1 Design values of

specimens tested Specimen M B,d MC,d V AB,d VBC,d VC D,d N

D12-C30-M 53 53 44 109 54 300

D12-C30-C 53 53 44 109 54 300
D12-C60-M 68 68 56 139 69 446
D12-C60-C 79 79 66 162 81 640
D14-FC30-M 54 54 45 111 55 275
D14-FC30-C 54 54 45 111 55 275
D14-FC60-M 78 78 65 160 80 577
D14-FC60-C 78 78 65 160 80 577
D16-FC30-M 56 56 46 115 57 300
D16-FC30-C 56 56 46 115 57 300
D16-FC60-M 71 71 59 146 72 480
D16-FC60-C 71 71 59 146 72 480
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188 179

displacement increments of approximately 5 mm, at
which the load is maintained constant for at least 1 min
in order to mark cracks and take photographs of the
specimen’s crack pattern. The load and two of the three
support reactions are measured by using load cells,
while the specimen deflection at the location of the
transverse load point is measured by a linear variable
displacement transducer (LVDT). The forces and de-
flections are recorded by using a computer-based data-
acquisition system.
Since measuring one support reaction is sufficient
for the calculation of the remaining two reactions from
the equilibrium conditions, the measured values of the
additional reaction are used for assessing the accuracy
of the obtained force measurements. This assessment is
based on the comparison between the measured values
and their calculated counterparts, which shows that the
difference between two such values does not exceed
2 kN.
2.3. Specimen design
The elements are designed from first principles by using
the TA method, as implemented in EC2 [14], assuming
that their load-carrying capacity is reached when the
cross-sections through support B and the transverse-
load point C (see Fig. 1) attain their flexural capac-
ity, the latter condition being referred to henceforth
as plastic-hinge formation. Using the cross-sectional
and material characteristics of the specimens, together
with a rectangular compressive-stress block as recom-
mended by the EC2 [14], the flexural capacity of the
element is calculated as M p (for a value of N equal to
N ≈ 0.2bh f c ).
Assuming that, at the ultimate-limit state, the bend-
ing moments at cross-sections through support B (M B )
and load point C (MC ) are equal to M B = MC = M p ,
the indeterminate specimen becomes determinate and
the shear forces within the portions AB, BC, and CD are
easily calculated as V AB = 0.51M p , VBC = 2.05M p ,
and VC D = 1.02M p , as indicated in Fig. 1 (which also
shows the corresponding values resulting from elastic
analysis). These values are used as design values for
safeguarding against shear failure, in line with current
code thinking where critical cross-sections are checked
for shear. The values of bending moment, shear force
and axial force used to design the specimens are given
in Table 1, where M B,d , MC,d the bending moments (in
kNm) at support B and load point C; V AB,d , V BC,d and
VC D,d the shear forces (in kN) within portions AB, BC

Table 2 Concrete mix

details. (Quantities in Kg.) Concrete mixes C30 C60 FC30 FC60

CEM II/B-M (PL) 32.5N 280 – 280 –

CEM I 42.5N – 400 – 400
SAND 0/4 Halyps 830 944 819 918
GRAVEL 4/16 Halyps 1063 838 1049 814
SILICA FUME Anglefort – 40 – 40
CIMFLUID 2019 AXIM 3.99 – 3.99 –
CIMFLUID 2010 AXIM – 2.7 – 2.7
Steel fibres DRAMIX RC80/60BN – – 25 –
Steel fibres DRAMIX RC65/35BN – – – 50
Water (added, on dry aggregates) 171 186 171 186
Weff/C 0.55 0.42 0.55 0.42

Table 3 Experimental and

calculated values of P (kN) Experimental Calculated
and corresponding δ (mm)
at various load levels, Specimen Pmax δ Pmax δ0.85Pmax Pty Pny = P1P P2P Pmax /P2P δny μ
specimens under monotonic
loading D12C30M 190 30.5 54 105 142 164 1.16 11.0 4.9
D12C60M 217 30.6 64 158 183 210 1.03 11.2 5.7
D14FC30M 173 30.3 57.9 110 144 166 1.05 11.1 5.2
D14FC60M 238 27.7 58.9 173 209 240 0.99 12.7 4.7
D16FC30M 187 31.1 65.5 109 149 171 1.09 11 6
D16FC60M 235 32.8 62.3 150 190 218 1.08 12.4 5.0
180 Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188

Table 4 Experimental and calculated values of P (kN) and corresponding δ (mm) at various load levels, specimens under cyclic
loading

Experimental Calculated

Specimen Pmax δ Pmax δsust δfail Pty Pny = P1P P2P Pmax /P2P δny μsust μfail

D12C30C 175 29.0 15.7 31.2 105 142 164 1.07 11.0 1.4 2.8
D12C60C 235 19.2 17.1 25 164 211 243 0.97 13.5 1.3 1.9
D14FC30C 178 39.1 41.5 55.2 110 144 166 1.08 11.1 3.7 5.0
D14FC60C 233 32.9 23.4 36.4 173 209 240 0.97 12.7 1.8 2.9
D16FC30C 183 37.3 40 55 109 149 171 1.07 11.0 3.6 5.0
D16FC60C 223 17.0 40.1 50 150 190 218 1.02 12.4 3.2 4.0

Table 5 Experimental values of bending moment (in kNm) at the support B (M B,e ) and the load point C (MC,e ) and shear force (in
kN) within portions AB (V AB,e ), BC (V BC,e ) and CD (VC D,e ), mode and location of failure for all specimens

Specimen M B,e M B,e /M B,d MC,e MC,e /MC,d V AB,e VBC,e VC D,e Failure mode Failure location

D12C30M 60.7 1.14 71.4 1.35 51 126 64 Shear CD right of C

D12C60M 75.9 1.12 81.5 1.20 63 147 70 Flexural Load point C
D14FC30M 54.6 1.01 65.4 1.21 46 115 59 Flexural Load point C
D14FC60M 81.7 1.05 91.1 1.17 68 161 77 Comp. zone & CD right of C
inclined cracking
D16FC30M 59.7 1.07 70.6 1.26 50 124 63 Flexural Load point C
D16FC60M 74.9 1.06 92.8 1.31 62 156 79 Flexural Load point C
D12C30C 58.4 1.10 64.8 1.22 49 117 58 Web horizontal & Middle of BC
inclined cracking
D12C60C 78.6 0.99 87.6 1.11 65 158 77 Shear CD right of C
D14FC30C 61.4 1.14 66.7 1.24 51 120 57 Comp. zone & CD right of C
inclined cracking
D14FC60C 82.7 1.06 91.3 1.17 69 159 74 Comp. zone & CD right of C
inclined cracking
D16FC30C 64.8 1.16 68.0 1.21 54 125 58 Flexural Load point C
D16FC60C 77.6 1.09 78.1 1.10 65 151 72 Flexural Load point C

and CD, respectively; and N the axial force (in kN).
(For locations of B, C, AB, BC and CD see Fig. 1). It
should be noted that for the calculation of both flexural
and shear capacities of the elements, all safety factors
are taken equal to 1.0.
the longitudinal steel reinforcement; part2, the con-
crete mix used, and; part 3, the loading history adopted
(see Section 2.1). Full design details of the specimens
are shown in Fig. 3.

2.4. Specimens
All structural elements are simply supported two-
span continuous beam-columns, with a large span of
1950 mm and a small span of 1200 mm. Their to-
tal length is 3350 mm, with a square cross-section
of 200 mm side. Henceforth these structural ele-
ments are referred to by using a three-part name,
with the constituent parts arranged in sequence (i.e.
part1 part2 part3) as follows: part 1, the diameter of
2.4.1. Reinforcement
For part1, three different types of longitudinal rein-
forcement are used: 12 mm diameter bars denoted
as D12; 14 mm diameter bars denoted as D14; and
16 mm diameter bars denoted as D16. The above steel
characteristics are indicated in the structural-element
name by replacing part1 with D12, D14, and D16,
respectively. The average yield-stress (f y ) and ulti-
mate strength (fu ) of the reinforcing bars, as obtained
from tension tests, were 624 MPa and 736 MPa for
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188 181

Table 6 Experimental values of bending moment (in kNm) at support B (M B,e ) and load point C (MC,e ) and shear force (in kN)
within portions AB (V AB,e ), BC (V BC,e ) and CD (VC D,e ), mode and location of failure for all specimens

Specimen portion

AB left side AB right side BC both ends BC middle CD left side CD right side

Specimen EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI

Monotonic tests
D12C30 133 162 218 255 218 255 133 162 218 255 133 162
D12C60 165 227 283 356 283 356 165 227 283 356 165 227
D14FC30 98 127 171 208 171 208 119 148 171 208 98 127
D14FC60 158 226 339 422 339 422 171 239 339 422 158 226
D16FC30 135 159 255 288 255 288 135 159 255 288 135 159
D16FC60 172 216 289 346 289 346 172 216 289 346 172 216
Cyclic tests
D12C30 133 162 218 255 218 255 133 162 218 255 133 162
D12C60 190 254 305 383 305 383 190 254 305 383 190 254
D14FC30 98 127 171 208 171 208 119 148 171 208 98 127
D14FC60 158 226 339 422 339 422 171 239 339 422 158 226
D16FC30 135 159 255 288 255 288 135 159 255 288 135 159
D16FC60 172 216 289 346 289 346 172 216 289 346 172 216

Table 7 Ratios of shear capacities predicted by EC2 and ACI to measured shear forces for the various portions of specimens (values
in bold indicate locations of shear failure)

Specimen portion

AB left side AB right side BC both ends BC middle CD left side CD right side

Specimen EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI EC2 ACI

Monotonic tests
D12C30 2.63 3.20 4.31 5.04 1.73 2.02 1.05 1.28 3.41 3.99 2.08 2.54
D12C60 2.61 3.59 4.48 5.63 1.92 2.42 1.12 1.54 4.07 5.12 2.37 3.26
D14FC30 2.15 2.79 3.76 4.57 1.49 1.82 1.04 1.29 2.92 3.56 1.68 2.17
D14FC60 2.32 3.32 4.98 6.20 2.11 2.62 1.06 1.49 4.40 5.47 2.05 2.93
D16FC30 2.71 3.19 5.12 5.79 2.05 2.32 1.09 1.28 4.06 4.58 2.15 2.53
D16FC60 2.75 3.46 4.63 5.54 1.85 2.22 1.10 1.39 3.65 4.38 2.18 2.73
Cyclic tests
D12C30 2.73 3.33 4.48 5.24 1.86 2.17 1.13 1.38 3.79 4.43 2.31 2.82
D12C60 2.90 3.88 4.66 5.85 1.93 2.43 1.20 1.61 3.95 4.96 2.46 3.29
D14FC30 1.92 2.48 3.34 4.07 1.42 1.73 0.99 1.23 2.98 3.62 1.71 2.21
D14FC60 2.29 3.28 4.92 6.12 2.13 2.65 1.08 1.50 4.57 5.69 2.13 3.05
D16FC30 2.50 2.94 4.72 5.33 2.04 2.31 1.08 1.27 4.38 4.94 2.32 2.73
D16FC60 2.66 3.34 4.47 5.35 1.91 2.29 1.14 1.43 4.03 4.83 2.40 3.01

D12, 587 MPa and 747 MPa for D14 and 556 MPa
and 743 MPa for D16 bars, respectively. From simi-
lar tensile tests, the values of f y and fu for the trans-
verse reinforcement are also obtained to be equal to
318 MPa and 395 MPa, for the 6 mm and 471 MPa
and 684 MPa, for the 8 mm diameter stirrup steel,
respectively.
2.4.2. Concrete
Concrete mixes with fc approximately equal to 30 MPa
and 60 MPa are used for the specimens, with one mix
of each type containing steel fibres. The concrete mixes
without fibres are denoted as C30 and C60 and are used
for the D12 specimens only, whereas those with fibres,
182
Fig. 4 Specimen D12C30M: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
denoted as FC30 and FC60, are used for the larger
diameters. The type of concrete used is indicated in
the specimen name by replacing part2 with C30, C60,
FC30 or FC60. The mix designs (given in Table 2) were
provided by Unibéton, using local aggregate furnished
by their subsidiary in Greece, Halyps S.A.
Concrete is cast in batches for each category. All
specimens (including at least six cylinders per batch)
are cured under wet hessian for one month, after which
they are stored under laboratory ambient conditions
at a temperature of approximately 20◦ C and a relative
humidity of approximately 50%. For each batch of con-
crete, the concrete compressive strength is determined
by crushing the six cylinders at the time of testing,
approximately two months after casting. The corre-
sponding compressive strengths are: 39 MPa for spec-
imens D12-C30 and 74 MPa for D12-C60; 34 MPa for
specimens D14-FC30 and 72 MPa for D14-FC60; and
finally, 37 MPa for specimens D16-FC30 and 62 MPa
for D16-FC60.
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
Fig. 5 Specimen D12C60M: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
2.4.3. Loading
The loading regime used in the programme, broadly
classified as monotonic loading and cyclic loading, is
denoted as M and C, respectively, replacing part3 in
the structural element name.
3. Test results
The test results are presented in Tables 3 to 7 and
Figs. 5 to 16. Tables 3 and 4 compare the experi-
mental established and calculated values of the trans-
verse load and corresponding displacement at vari-
ous load stages for specimens M and C, respectively
(P y , P1P , P2P and Pmax : the values of transverse
force at first (incipient) yield, 1st plastic hinge, 2nd
plastic hinge (predicted load-carrying capacity) and
experimentally established peak level, respectivly;
δny , δPmax , δ0.85Pmax , δsust , and δfail : the values of
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188 183

Fig. 7 Specimen D14FC60M: (a) Load-displacement curve and

Fig. 6 Specimen D14FC30M: (a) Load-displacement curve and (b) mode of failure
(b) mode of failure

and load at the second plastic hinge formation P2 p ,

transverse displacement at Py , Pmax , the post-peak
respectively).
value of P = 0.85Pmax , the maximum sustained load-
Although the work primarily focuses on structural
ing cycle and loading cycle that caused failure, re-
behaviour under cyclic loading, testing under mono-
spectively; μsust = δ0.85Pmax /δny orμsust = δsust /δny for
tonic loading was considered essential for purposes
the cases of monotonic and cyclic, respectively,
of comparison. Moreover, the results obtained under
loading, and μfail = δfail /δny for cyclic loading,
monotonic loading were used to define a nominal value
δ1P = δny ).
of the yield point, which formed the basis for the as-
The experimentally obtained values of the internal
sessment of the ductility ratio of all specimens.
actions (bending moments and shear forces), the failure
mode, and the location of failure for all specimens
3.1. Discussion of test results under monotonic
tested are given in Table 5. In Table 6 the code predic-
loading
tions of shear capacity are given for each shear span,
whereas Table 7 shows the ratios of these values to their
Figures 4 to 9 show the load-displacement curves ob-
experimental counterparts (values in bold indicate lo-
tained in the monotonic loading tests. The figures also
cations of shear failure).
indicate the location of the nominal yield point, used
The figures show (a) the load-displacement curves
for assessing the ductility ratio, determined as follows:
and (b) the mode of failure of the specimens tested,
with Figs. 5–10 describing specimen behaviour un- (a) The section bending moment at “true” yield, Mty
der monotonic loading and Figs. 11–16 under cyclic (assessed by assuming that yielding occurs when
loading (The triangular symbols represent – mov- either the tension reinforcement yields or the con-
ing upwards – incipient yield, first plastic hinge δ ny crete strain at the extreme compressive fibre attains
184
Fig. 8 Specimen D16FC30M: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
a value of 0.002) and the section flexural capacity,
M p , are first calculated.
(b) Using the values of Mty and M p derived in (a), the
corresponding values of the transverse load at true
yield, Pty = 2.67Mty , and at the formation of the
1st plastic hinge, P1P = 2.67M p , are obtained, as
indicated in Fig. 1.
(c) In Figs. 4–9, lines are drawn through the points of
the load-displacement curves at P = 0 and P =
Pty . These lines are extended to the load level
Pny = P1P , which is considered to define the nomi-
nal yield resistance and the corresponding displace-
ment δny , provided in Table 3.
(d) Using this displacement the specimen’s ductility
ratio (μ) is defined, as the ratio of the displace-
ment at a post-peak load of 85% the load-carrying
capacity (δ0.85Pmax ) to δny , i.e. μ = δ0.85Pmax /δny ,
also given in Table 3.
Figures 4–9 indicate that the presence of fibres does
not have any apparent effect neither on ductility nor
on the mode of failure of the specimens tested under
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
Fig. 9 Specimen D16FC60M: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
monotonic loading. The specimens exhibit ductile be-
haviour which, for all but two specimens, combines
with a flexural mode of failure. The mode of failure
of the above two specimens, one with and the other
without fibres, is characterised by the formation of in-
clined cracking outside the critical length of span CD
(see Fig. 1), which penetrates deeply into the compres-
sive zone leading to failure (see Figs. 4 and 7). The only
difference in the mode of failure of these specimens ap-
pears to be that the presence of fibres on the one hand
reduces the width and on the other increases the number
of inclined cracks (shown in Fig. 7), as opposed to the
single and wide inclined crack (shown in Fig. 4) which
characterises the behaviour of the specimens without
fibres. Table 3 indicates that the specimen ductility ratio
(μ), varies between 4.3 and 6.1, with the smaller values
obtained by the higher strength concrete specimens. It
may also be noted in Table 3 that, for all specimens,
the experimental values of load-carrying capacity Pmax
are larger than their calculated counterparts, by an
amount varying between 3% and 15%. However,
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
Fig. 10 Specimen D12C30C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
while for the specimens without fibres this increase
in Pmax is considerably larger for the lower-strength
concrete elements, this increase in Pmax appears to
be independent of concrete strength for specimens
FC.
It is considered that the above increase in Pmax re-
flects an increase in flexural capacity shown in Table 5.
The causes for the latter were found to be unaffected
by the confinement offered by the dense stirrup spacing
in the critical regions [7] and are discussed elsewhere
[1].
3.2. Discussion of test results under cyclic loading
Figures 10–15 show that, in contrast with the speci-
mens tested under monotonic loading, those tested un-
der cyclic loading exhibit behaviour heavily dependent
on the presence of fibres in the mix. In fact, Table 4
shows that, for the loading cycle that induced the max-
imum sustained displacement (δsust ), the ductility ratio
(μsust = δsust /δny ) varied from 1.4 to 3.74, while the
185
Fig. 11 Specimen D12C60C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
ductility ratio at failure (μfail = δfail /δny , where δfail the
displacement at which conventional failure occurred)
varied between 1.6 and 5.0, depending on the use or
not of steel fibres.
It is interesting to note in Figs. 10 and 11 that the
specimens without fibres exhibit very low ductility
which, as Table 4 indicates, corresponds to a ductil-
ity ratio δsust of approximately 1.5. Figures 10(a) and
(b) show that such a low ductility is characterised by
a brittle type of failure due to near horizontal splitting
of the portion of the specimen between the load point
and the internal support (portion BC in Fig. 1), in the
region of the point of inflection. And yet, Table 7 indi-
cates that, for specimen D12C30M, there is an approx-
imately 10% margin of safety against the occurrence of
such a type of failure, whereas for specimen D12C60C,
the margin of safety increases to 20%.
A similar type failure by horizontal splitting within
portion BC appears to occur in specimens D14FC30C
and D14FC60C (Figs. 13(b) and 14(b)). However, such
splitting occurs concurrently with inclined cracking in
186
Fig. 12 Specimen D14FC30C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
the region adjacent to the critical region of the speci-
men portion between external support and load point
(portion CD in Fig. 1), which eventually extends within
the compression zone and causes failure, before the
specimen fails in the vicinity of the inflection point.
As for the case of the specimens without fibres, this is
an unexpected type of failure since, in accordance with
code predictions of Tables 6 and 7, there is an over
100% margin of safety against any occurrence of shear
failure within that region, while ignoring the beneficial
effect that fibres may have on shear capacity.
Comparing the results in Figs. 12 and 13 with those
in Figs. 10 and 11 it is seen that in contrast with
monotonic loading, the presence of fibres has a sig-
nificant effect on both ductility and mode of fail-
ure under cyclic response. For specimen D14FC30C,
Table 4 shows that the increase in ductility is significant
(μsust = 3.7 and μfail = 5.0) and exceeds the code re-
quirement for μsust = 3.5. For the specimen with the
higher-strength concrete, the increase in ductility is
considerably smaller. It would appear, therefore, that
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
Fig. 13 Specimen D14FC60C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
concrete strength has a significant effect on ductility
and this is discussed later. On the other hand, as regards
the mode of failure, the presence of fibres appears to
prevent failure in the region of the point of inflection,
which, as discussed earlier, characterizes the mode of
failure of the specimens without fibres tested under
cyclic loading.
As for the case of the specimens with longitudi-
nal reinforcement comprising 14 mm diameter bars, the
ductility and failure mode of those with 16 mm diam-
eter bars are equally affected by the presence of fi-
bres. In contrast with the former, however, the latter
are characterized by ductile behaviour and a flexural
mode of failure, as indicated in Figs. 14 and 15, irre-
spective of the concrete strength. In fact, Table 4 shows
that the ductility ratio of the specimens (μsust ≈ 3.2
and μfail > 4) satisfies the code requirement for μsust =
3.5.
It can therefore be concluded from the above that
the specimens with fibres and concrete strength up to
62 MPa exhibit ductile behaviour within the code re-
quirements. It is only the specimen with a concrete
Materials and Structures (2007) 40:175–188
Fig. 14 Specimen D16FC30C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
strength of 72 MPa that exhibits a reduction in duc-
tility, compared to the former specimens. The causes
of this reduction may be attributed to the amount of
fibres used, which may be insufficient for values of the
compressive strength larger than 60 MPa.
As for the case of the monotonic tests, cyclic tests
show that the flexural capacity at the sections primarily
under the load point and, also, at the internal support
(locations of the two plastic hinges), are significantly
larger than the calculated, by as much as 33% for the
first hinge (Table 5).
4. Conclusions
Twelve two-span beam-column specimens are tested
using different reinforcement diameters and concrete
grades, with or without steel fibres in the mix. Both
monotonic and cyclic loading are considered. Based
on the experimental results, the following conclusions
are drawn.
187
Fig. 15 Specimen D16FC60C: (a) Load-displacement curve and
(b) mode of failure
For most specimens tested, the experimentally es-
tablished ultimate load-carrying capacity was found to
be larger than the calculated by as much as 15%.
The flexural capacity at the 1st plastic hinge
was found to be exceeding the calculated value by
10%–33%. For the 2nd plastic hinge, the difference
between experimental and calculated values varied be-
tween −8% and 20%.
For the specimens without fibres, under cyclic load-
ing, designing to current code provisions does not safe-
guard against a premature brittle type of failure. In
fact, the specimens failed due to the formation of near-
horizontal web cracking in the region of the point of
inflection.
On the contrary, specimens with fibres satisfied the
performance requirements of current codes for strength
and ductility for concrete strength up to 60 MPa. For
higher values of concrete strength, in spite of the sig-
nificant improvement in performance compared to that
of specimens without fibres, the ductility achieved did
not meet the code requirements.
188
Acknowledgements The present work forms part of a research
programme financed by Degussa Hellas S.A. under EU Project
No GDR1-2000-2560 (HIPER).
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