Engineering Structures,Vol. 19, No. 9. pp.

738 747, 1997

© 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd
All rights reserved. Printed in Great Britain
PIh S0141--0296(96)00150-2 0141 0296/97 $17.00 + O.(X)
ELSEVIER

Shear d o m a i n of fibre-reinforced
high-strength concrete beams
M. Imam,* L. Vandewalle, F. Mortelmans and D. Van Gemert
Department of Civil Engineering, Catholic University of Leuven, de Croylaan 2, 3001
Heverlee, Belgium
(Received November 1994; revised version accepted June 1995)

This paper concerns the incorporation of steel fibres in singly

reinforced high strength concrete beams without stirrups failing
under the combined effect of flexure and shear. An analytical
model was developed and published for predicting the relative
flexural capacity of steel fibre high strength concrete beams
(Mu/M~) i.e. the ratio of moment with shear interaction to pure
flexural moment. This paper investigates the significant role of
steel fibres in increasing the beam strength up to its full flexural
capacity. An equation is derived for the critical shear span-to-depth
ratio (a/d)c at which there is a maximum reduction of the flexural
strength due to shear influence. An analytical approach is
developed to determine the domain of shear effect, by which it
becomes possible to predict whether shear compression, diagonal
tension, or flexural failure will occur for a given beam. The interac-
tion between steel fibres and longitudinal reinforcement bars is
studied, and a nonlinear expression is derived for the optimum per-
centage of fibres by which a singly reinforced beam without stir-
rups reaches its full flexural capacity and does not fail in shear
regardless of shear span-to-depth ratio (a/d). © 1997 Elsevier
Science Ltd.

Keywords: high strength concrete, fibres, flexural capacity, shear

1. Introduction by Russo et al. 5 in their considerable study for

The benefits of using high-strength concrete (HSC) are
numerous but, to date, these benefits cannot be well
exploited. The application of HSC has been somewhat
restricted in some construction areas in which HSC is sub-
jected to shear, tension, or flexure. The main reasons for
such a restriction are the relatively higher brittleness of
HSC and the under-proportional increase of tensile strength
of HSC with respect to its compressive strength ~ 3. How-
ever, adding discontinuous steel fibres to HSC can over-
come these obstacles.
An analytical model was proposed 4 for the relative flex-
ural capacity (M,/MsO of steel fibre high-strength concrete
( S F - H S C ) beams without stirrups. In this paper a comp-
lementary study is presented for the significant effect of
steel fibres in improving the shear resistance of simply
reinforced HSC beams without stirrups. The approach
described in this paper follows the basic concept outlined
* N o w at D e p a r t m e n t of Structural Engineering, M a n s o u r a University, PO
Box 47, M a n s o u r a , Egypt.
shear/moment interaction of conventionally reinforced con-
crete beams.
An equation is developed for the critical shear span-to-
depth ratio (a/d)c, at which the maximum reduction of the
flexural capacity due to the infuence of shear occurs (i.e.
M,/M1t is minimum). The domain of shear influence with
respect to the fibre effect (F), longitudinal reinforcement
ratio (p), and shear span-to-depth ratio (a/d) is determined
analytically. By means of such a zone, it becomes possible
to predict whether or not a singly reinforced beam without
stirrups will fail by the effect of shear. The domain of shear
influence shows high precision when it is applied for the
available test data. Furthermore, a new expression is
derived for the optimum percentage of steel fibres which
makes a singly reinforced HSC beam without stirrups not
fail in shear regardless of the load position.
There are several reasons why it may be preferable to use
fibres rather than stirrups to resist shear forces in reinforced
concrete structures. Firstly, fibres are randomly distributed
throughout the concrete volume at relatively small spacings
and thus provide equal resistance to stresses in all direc-
tions. This may be particularly beneficial in structures

738
Shear domain o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. Imam et al.
designed to resist shear forces due to earthquake and wind
loading. Secondly, fibres increase the concrete's resistance
to crack formation and propagation. Thirdly, the increased
resistance of the concrete cover to spalling and cracking
helps to protect steel from corrosion in adverse environ-
ments and, hence, improve structural durability. Fourthly,
since conventional stirrups require relatively high labour
input to bend and fix in place, fibres may significantly
reduce construction time and costs, especially in an area of
high labour costs and possibly even labour shortages.
Fifthly, fibre concrete can also be easily placed in thin or
irregularly shaped sections such as architectural panels,
where it may be very difficult to place stirrups. However,
the main purpose of this paper is not to compare between
steel fibres and stirrups as shear reinforcement. It is to
investigate the influence of fibres on both the shear strength
and failure mode of longitudinally reinforced HSC beams
without stirrups and to provide answers for the following
questions:
(1) How much is the improvement of shear strength as
well as flexural strength of HSC beams due to the
addition of steel fibres?
(2) How to ensure shear safety of reinforced HSC beams
without shear reinforcement regardless of shear span
to depth ratio (a/d)?
(3) What is the optimum percentage of steel fbres (Vf_op,)
at which a beam without stirrups reaches its full flex-
ural capacity?
2. Review of the previous study
The following two equations were derived 4 to predict the
nominal flexural moment (M/~) as well as the ultimate shear
strength (v.) of singly reinforced HSC beams containing
steel fibres:
1 (5) Verifying the new equation by several test results com-
M, = ~ ofvb~ (2 - rl) (1)
+ 0.83Fbd 2 (0.75 - rD(2.15 + rl)
where:
pf~. + 2.32F
= 0.85f,~ + 3.08F
1 + ,](5.08/d,)
to = size effect factor - [ (M,) is given as
•v!l + d/(25d,,)
O) = reinforcement factor = p ( 1 + 4F)
F = fibre factor = (L/Ds)VId~
= length, diameter and volume fraction of
fibres, respectively
= bond efficiency factor
= 1.0 for hooked fibre
= 0.9 for deformed fibre
= 0.5 for smooth fibre
P = longitudinal steel ratio = A,/bd
As = area of tension reinforcement
f, = compressive strength of concrete in MPa
L -- yield strength of reinforcing bars in MPa
739
b = width of the beam in mm
d = effective depth of the beam in mm
d,, = maximum aggregate size in mm
a/d = shear span to depth ratio
Equation (1) is in fact a modification of the ACI approach
(ACI Committee 544, 1988) 6 for predicting the flexural
capacity of normal strength fibre concrete composites to be
valid and applicable for concrete with higher strength. The
modification is mainly in the tensile stress intensity (05)
and the neutral axis depth (c) as shown in Figure 1. The
proposed equation [Eq. (1)] was derived on the basis of
the assumptions and the equilibrium of forces as shown in
Figure 1. It is worth noting that in case of non-fibrous con-
crete (F = 0.0), Eq. (1) can be written as
Ms, = o y S (1 (3)
l.u,.
The above formula, Eq. (3), is typically the original equ-
ation of the ACI Building Code for non-fibrous reinforced
concrete beams (ACI 318RM-83, [10.3.117. Therefore the
proposed Eq. (1) is, in fact, an extension of the ACI equ-
ation to predict the full flexural capacity of both HSC and
SF-HSC beams with rectangular cross-section.
Equation (2) for predicting the ultimate shear strength
of fibrous high-strength concrete beams without stirrups,
was proposed on the basis of the following aspects:
(1) The simultaneous occurrence of both arch action and
beam action mechanisms of shear resistance
(2) The equilibrium of forces in the shear span of the beam
at the ultimate state
(3) Incorporating the fibre effect (F) together with the
longitudinal steel ratio (O) as one term (co)
(4) Using Bazant's law s for size effect (tO) which con-
siders, in addition to the effect of relative beam size
(d/d,), the effect of aggregate size (d,)
piled from the literature
The concrete compressive strength of the test results used
ranged from 53 to 140 MPa, the fibre content varied from
0.0 to 1.5%, and the shear span to depth ratio (a/d) from
1.5 to 6.0.
Based on Eqs. (1) and (2), a shear moment interaction
model has been developed to predict the relative flexural
capacity of SF-HSC beams without stirrups. The internal
ultimate resisting moment (/14,) is equated to the external
moment (V,a). By means of Eq. (2), the ultimate moment
M,= V,a= v,bare(d) (4)
M, = 0.6bd2to~]-~ If~j44 (d) + 275 (5)
The relation between M, and M~ has been presented as a
dimensionless ratio, with 1.0 representing the full flexural
capacity of the beam. Dividing Eq. (5) by Eq. (1) gives the
relative flexural capacity of both HSC and SF-HSC beams
without stirrups.
740 Shear d o m a i n o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. I m a m e t a l .

~-~D- O.O0~J O.85~ It'

__C- w"
¢
Fibrons
Conmte
7 TT-. c
1~Teutrsl . . . . . .

Axis
T,
...,11.-
- - ~ s OMWO) T=Tt *T,
000 "~ID~Ts
- - ~ ~-- ~ S m ~ )
--~ ~- cr~
P
Strain diagram SlmpIifled s t g e u dis|rim
Figure 1 Rectangular reinforced fibre concrete beam at ultimate m o m e n t

Figure 2 shows the effect of fibres ( F ) on both M, and

m.
"
1.2tb',7o) /~!44(d) + 275 ,/J.] M e as formulated in Eqs. (1) and (5). It can be observed
=
-< 1.0 (6)
Mr7 R~(2 "~)+ 1.66F(0.75-~/)(2.15+r/) that M,, is strongly affected by increasing F, while Mtt is
only slightly affected. This means that the improvement of
shear capacity by the effect of fibres is more significant
than the improvement of nominal flexural capacity. In other
3. The role of steel fibres
words, steel fibres can successfully replace the shear
Addition of fibres to concrete makes it more homogeneous reinforcement, but it is senseless to use steel fibres as a
and transforms it from a brittle to a more ductile material. complementary reinforcement of longitudinal bars. For
Because steel fibres are randomly oriented and very closely instance, adding 0.75% (by volume) of hooked steel fibres
spaced throughout the matrix, they are more effective than with an aspect ratio of 75 to HSC beams ( f = 110 MPa,
conventional reinforcement for bridging across cracks and j~ = 550 MPa, p = 0.0187, a / d = 2.5) results in an increase
so providing some post-cracking ductility. When fibres are of M, by 86.7%, while the increase of M/t is limited to
wisely used, they can help us to produce concrete with 6.2%.
increased tensile strength and strain capacities, fatigue and The solid lines in Figure 2 present the border of the beam
impact resistance, energy absorption, crack resistance, and strength. This border consists of two parts. In the first part,
durability. However, fibres give us the opportunity to utilize steel fibres are not influential enough to increase the beam
the concrete for a variety of applications such as pavements strength up to its full flexural capacity. Hence, in this part
(highways, roads, parking areas, runways, and bridge M. < Mjt and shear failure is expected, whereas in the
decks), industrial floors, shear failure zones in structures, second part, fibres are effective enough to provide a beam
shotcrete, repair of concrete structures, and lining of tun- without stirrups with full flexural capacity and safe in shear
nels. (M. =Mtt). The point at which the two parts meet indicates
The ultimate capacity (M,) of a beam is strongly affected the minimum percentage of fibres which is capable of
by the interaction of shear. When a beam without stirrups increasing the beam strength up to 100% M~. This point
fails at 60% of its full flexural capacity (M, = 60% Mjt), can be denoted as the optimum fibre factor at a given shear
this means that we are just 40% short of our goal. The use span-to-depth ratio (F,,~,,,./,1) which can also be observed in
of steel fibres is a possible solution to overcome this short- the representation of M . / M H versus F (Figure 3). It can also
age since they are capable of increasing the beam strength be observed from Figure 3 that the increase of F results in
up to its full flexural capacity (M, = 100% M/~). an appropriate increase of M./M~. Furthermore, the percent-
age of steel fibres to be added to a beam with a lower O,
Vf % - (Hooked steel fibre; Aspectratio=75)
V$ % - ( Hookedsteel fibres;Aspectratio=75)
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2
14 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 .2
/ ~ = °'°'e~ I
II a/d= ~-6 I
If~ =11o M ~
12 If~ =550
o, oo , / X
10 0.8 @ ,~ i

,o ~0o7

• 0.6
/ Shear Failure F;lexural Failure

,,F
0.5 J
4 i i i i
0.0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0,4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 0.4
0.00 0.15 0.$0 0.45 0.60 0.75 0.90
Fibre Factor ( F ) Fibre Factor ( F )
Figure 2 Fibre effect on both ultimate and n o m i n a l flexural Figure 3 Fibre factor (F) versus relative flexural capacity
moments (M./M~/)
Shear d o m a i n o f f i b r e - r e i n f o r c e d concrete beams: M. I m a m e t al. 741

foregoing figures (Figures 4 and 5) show also that, as p

M u
0.5
p%
o 8
a/d
Figure 4 Combined effect of a/d and p on the relative flexural
capacity (f~=110MPa, fv=550MPa, F=0.5625, d = 3 0 0 m m ,
da = 14 mm)
to reach its full flexural capacity, is less than that required
for the same beam with a higher p.
4. Factors affecting relative flexural capacity
The relative flexural capacity (M./M/7) is in fact a good
indicator of the shear problem in reinforced concrete beams
without stirrups. As shown in Eq. (6), the value of M./Mjt
is affected by a combination of a large number of para-
meters (p, F, a/d, f , f,,, d and d.). This large number of
parameters is truly the main difficulty when the shear prob-
lem is analytically investigated. However, the investigation
of the interaction effect between the different parameters
involved gives the opportunity to determine the suitable
type and the optimum quantity of different materials which
makes M,,/M~ = 1.0 and hence, the problem of shear can
entirely be avoided. It can be generally pointed out that F
a n d f . are in direct proportion to M,/M~, while p andf~ are
inversely proportional to M,,/M~. In addition, a particular
relationship between M,,/Me and a/d can obviously be
noted.
Figures 4 and 5 present the combined effect of p, F, and
a/d in case o f f = 110 MPa, f~ = 550 MPa, d = 300 mm, and
d, -= 14 mm. It can be seen that the reduction of the relative
moment occurs mainly between two boundary values of
a/d. For p = 0.0187 and F - - 0.60 (Figure 5), the region of
diagonal failure disappeared completely, i.e. the relative
moment equals 1.0 (M, = M~). The same case can also be
attained when F = 0 . 5 6 2 5 and p = 0 . 0 1 8 (Figure4). The
increased and F decreased, the reduction moment region
(valley) deepened rapidly with a wider range of the two
limiting values of a/d. For example, for p = 0.0187 and
F = 0.0 the relative moment decreases to about 0.56 at
a/d= 2.19. Accordingly, the relationship between M,/M~
and a/d exhibited three different important values of a/d:
two limiting values at which the shear effect starts to appear
and a third value of a/d at which the effect of shear
becomes maximum. Henceforth, the latter value of a/d is
called, in this study, the critical shear span-to-depth ratio
( a/d)c.
The flexural moment (M~) is directly proportional to the
yield strength ~,), while M, is not influenced by the change
offv at all. Therefore, the relative strength M, IM~ decreases
as f,, increases. For instance, the increase offv from 400 to
500 MPa (p = 0.03, F = 0.3, a/d= 2.5, f = 110 MPa, and
d, = 14 mm) results in a decrease of M,,IM~ with 18.0%.
On the contrary, the increase of ft. from 80 to 100 MPa
leads to an increase of M, IM~ with 2.9% (p = 0.03, F = 0.3,
a/d= 2.5, f~. = 400 MPa, and d, = 14 mm).
The relative flexural capacity is also affected by both the
effective beam depth (d) and the maximum aggregate size
(d,,). Note that the effect of d which is concerned herein
differs from that particular effect which is implied in the
effect of a/d as mentioned previously. In fact, the effective
depth (d) has another effect (at constant a/d) on M, IM~ as
a size effect factor. However, the relative flexural capacity
is found to be adversely influenced by the increase of beam
depth at a given value of aid. It can also be observed that
the change of the maximum aggregate size (d,) slightly
affects the relative flexural strength (M, IM~).
To study the sensitivity of M,/M~ for the variation of
different parameters, the following example is presented.
Given are: ft. = 110 MPa, £, = 550 MPa, p = 0.03, F = 0.3,
a/d=2.5, d = 3 0 0 m m and d,,= 14mm. The value of
M,/Mjt, as presented in Eq. (6), is calculated when every
parameter is changed by 50% while the other parameters
are still constant. The results as summarized in Table 1
show that M,/M~ is highly influenced by the change of both
f~ and a/d, whereas f,. and d (a/d = constant) have a rela-
tively minor effect on M,,IM~. Finally, F and p considerably
affect the relative moment while d, has a negligible effect.
5. Critical shear span-to-depth ratio
Crack patterns in reinforced concrete beams without stir-
rups were classified by several investigators 9-t2 into two

Table 1 Influence of different p a r a m e t e r s on the relative flex-

ural capacity

Variables M,/ Mt/

From To From To Difference

%

0.6 fc 80 120 MPa 0.678 0.709 + 4.5

0.3
F fy 400 600 MPa 0.930 0.649 -30.2
p 0.02 0.03 0.802 0.700 -12.7
0
F 0.4 0.6 0.766 0.887 +15.7
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 ?
1.5 2.25 0.936 0.720 -23.0
a/d a/d{ 3.5 5.25 0.716 0.882 +23.2
Figure 5 Combined effect of a/d and F on the relative flexural d 240 360 mm 0.735 0.670 - 8.8
capacity (fc=110MPa, fv=550MPa, p=0.0187, d=300mm, do 14 21 mm 0.700 0.709 + 1.2
da= 14 ram)
742
major types. The first type concerns the inclined cracks
which occur in the web of a beam before any other flexural
cracks appear in their vicinity. This type is termed 'web-
shear cracks' and is usually observed in thin-webbed, I-
shaped beams with large flanges like those used in pre-
stressed concrete construction. The second type is generally
identified as a ' f l e x u r a l - s h e a r crack'. In this type, an
inclined crack starts at the top of an existing flexural crack
and a short distance above the longitudinal reinforcement.
Although the flexural-shear crack is the most common type
in reinforced concrete beams, the mechanism by which it
forms is not entirely understood. The appearance of the
flexural-shear crack is mainly a function of the flexural
stress fir) and the shear stress (v). These stresses can be
calculated as
M flexural-shear crack or splitting of concrete around the
fr = Cl bd 2
V modes, which have been frequently observed, the beam
v=c,
- bd
where c~ and c 2 are constants, and V and M are the applied
shear and moment at a section. However, the effect of these
stresses can be expressed by the ratio a/d since,
f. cj M a ratio which separates beams that sustain further loading
C3 ) (9)
v ca Vd (d
where c 3 is another constant and a is the shear span. This
shows that the failure mode of a beam without stirrups is
significantly affected by the ratio a/d. The relation between
M,/M~ and a/d (Figure 6) shows two different values of
a/d for the same value of M,,/M~. Since the nominal flexural
strength (MI~) is constant for a given beam regardless of
the value of a/d, thus, at the same value of M,, there are
also two different values of a/d. It is known that M,, of a
given beam is proportional to the applied load multiplied
by a/d. Therefore, the existence of two different values of
a/d at the same value of M,/M/~ means that at the lower
value of a/d the beam can sustain higher loads than in the
case of the higher a/d value. Accordingly, two different
(a/d) L (a/d)
1.o ga. / Equation (11) indicates that the value of (a/d)c depends
!
~= 0 . 8
~. o.6
( I Mfl ) rain
0.5
o., . . . . . .
0 1 2 3 4 5
Shear Span to Depth Ratio
Figure 6 General relationship between Mu/Me~and aid
Shear domain o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. Imam et al.
types of shear failure may be distinguished at the two dif-
ferent values of a/d.
At the higher value of a/d, a flexural-shear crack
initiates near the tip of an existing flexural crack in the
shear span. With increasing applied load, the inclined crack
propagates simultaneously in two directions: towards the
load point and towards the support along the tensile
reinforcement. The crack continues to propagate until the
beam becomes unable to sustain further load. The failure
is sudden and may cause separation of a large part of the
shear span from the beam. This mode of failure is identified
as diagonal-tension (DT). Whereas, at the lower value of
a/d, the arch action is dominant and provides more load
capacity for the beam in comparison with the higher a/d
value. The failure of this beam mainly occurs as a result
of either concrete crushing above the upper end of a
(7) inclined crack itself. This failure mode is usually termed
as shear-compression (SC). In both DT and SC failure
(8)
fails before its full flexural capacity is developed.
At the minimum value of the relative moment
(M,,/M~t)m,,, there is only one value of a/d and hence, one
particular failure mode is expected. At this point, it
becomes difficult to distinguish DT from SC failures. Fen-
wick et al. ~-~have pointed out the existence of a critical a/d
after diagonal cracking from those that fail at diagonal
cracking. The value of (a/d)c, for normal strength concrete
beams, has been empirically reported in the range 2.0 to
3.0 ~3. However, on the basis of the proposed equation for
M,,/Mj¢, it becomes possible to obtain an analytical
expression for predicting the value of (a/d)c by setting the
derivative of Eq. (6) with respect to a/d equal to zero.
O(M. /M=j,)0.0
O(a/d)
(in)
Hence, Eq. (10) provides the following expression for
(a/d)c which draws the borderline between the DT and SC
failure modes:
(a/d)c = 11.12 oJO'2fc 0"176 (ll)
R
only on p, F, and f . It can easily be noted that (a/d)c is
in direct proportion to both p, and F but is inversely pro-
portional to f . For the usual values of p, and F, Eq. (11 )
gives (a/d)c values falling in the observed range.for normal
strength concrete. For example, for HSC beams without
fibres ( f = 110 MPa) and p = 0.0187, the predicted value
of (a/d)c is 2.19. When steel fibres with F = 0.5625 are
incorporated into the latter concrete, the value of (a/d)c
increases to 2.78. The relationship between (a/d)c and F
for different values of p and f . = 110 MPa, is shown in
Figure 7. It can be observed that for a given p the value
of F is limited by F,,p,(M, = M~) as will be explained below.
It should be pointed out that the variation of f does not
affect the value of (a/d)c significantly. For instance, the
.
6 7 increase of f from 80 to 120 MPa results in the decrease
of (a/d)c from 2.82 to 2.63 (o9= 0.05). To the authors'
(a/d)
knowledge, the effect o f f on the (a/d)c value has not been
previously observed or reported.
Shear domain o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. Imam et al. 743
4.0

t
3.6
F
3.2

a
(~)c 2.8 " -- ( M,,= Mn )

2.4

2.0 ,, /f~ =55° M~I I

/- --,-O . e . o o 5 / d =300 n i l
dL~=14 ~1]
1.6 ~ Figure 8 A t h r e e - d i m e n s i o n a l sketch illustrates the d o m a i n o f
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.4 shear effect

Fibre Factor ( F )
Figure 7 Critical shear span to depth ratio (a/d)c versus f i br e
factor (F) !.2
0"9 I • T e s t Beams p-O.OlSV |[

0.|
. = +- !!?+-ml
6. Domain of shear effect .,.-:,
1.o
At M , / M , = 1.0 (Figure 6), the two limiting values of a/d O.T II
can be denoted at (a/d)R in the right side and (a/d)L in the £
left side. Between these two limiting values the failure is 0.6 0.8 ~
affected by the shear interaction and M, will be less than <
M n (M,/M~ < 1.0). It is worth returning now to Figure 5
0.5
to see that, with the variation in F, pairs of the limiting
o.~ ~
values of a/d can be obtained. In addition, the distance
.o 0.4
between the two limiting points [(a/d)R-(a/d)L] dimin-
ishes with the increase of F. This means that between the
0.3 0.4 "
two limiting values of a/d shear failure is expected, while
outside those limiting points a beam provides its full flex-
0"1
ural capacity and fails in flexure. At a certain value of F,
0,,2 ,.~
the distance between (a/d) R and (a/d)L vanishes and the
two limiting points are equal to (a/d)c. Consequently, the 0.1
two limiting values of a/d define the borderline of shear
effect in fibrous HSC beams. 0.0 0.0
0 1 2 $ 4 $ $ 7
The zone of shear effect, however, is in fact the relation-
Shear Span to Depth Ratio ( a / d )
ship between F and a/d for a given p when M,/M~ = 1.0
which can be seen in the horizontal projection of Figure 5. Figure 9 (a) Domain of shear effect f o r p = 0.0187
Likewise, the horizontal projection of Figure 4 represents
the zone of shear effect as a relationship between p and
a/d for a given F. The choice of the suitable diagram to
represent the shear domain, whether it should be a/d versus l~t 1.6

F or a/d versus p, is mainly dependent on the given data

and variables. For instance, when the fibre effect is to be 1.4
studied, a relationship between a/d and F is preferable. l.O r-
Fopt~ - ~ Vf-~t II
Whereas, a/d versus p can be used in the case of non- ta
fibrous concrete or when p is the main variable. Anyway, to
obtain the domain of shear effect, the following nonlinear 0.8 li \ ~ ~
1.0 !
implicit equation should be solved:

o.~ BI

= = 1.0 0.6 i
Mj, p/,(2 - 77) + 1.66F (0.75 - ~)(2.15 + r/) 0.4
(12) 0.4

Figure 8 shows a three-dimensional sketch for the shear 0.2

O.2 ~
domain as a relationship between the three main para-
meters; a/d, F, and p. By means of a computer program,
0.0 0.0
Eq. (12) can be solved numerically to obtain the two values 0 1 2 $ 4 5 $ 7 g J
of a/d for a given F or p. The limiting zone of shear effect
Shear Span to Depth Ratio (a/ d)
together with the equation of (a/d)c clearly predict the fail-
ure mode of a beam. The shear domain as a/d versus F is Figure 9 (b) D o m a i n of shear effect f o r p = 0.0308
744 Shear d o m a i n o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. I m a m e t al.

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 $ 9 10 or shear failure (S) will occur. Moreover, for shear failure,

3.5
it becomes easy to predict whether it is diagonal-tension
(DT) or shear-compression (SC) failure.
3.0
Test data of HSC beams without stirrups (fl = 110 MPa,
0
J~. = 550 MPa) were published in Ref. (1). These test data
2.5 (Table 2 and Figure l l ) were applied to the new model to
check its accuracy. The proposed model shows a precise
2.0 agreement with the test results as indicated in Figures 9
and 10. It can be noted that the two beams B5 and B16
1.5 which had combination of shear and flexural failure
(Figure 12) are almost lying on the lines which make the
1.0 border between shear and flexural failure zones in Figures 9
and IO. This shows how accurate the model is for pre-
0.5 dicting shear flexural interaction of HSC beams containing
O steel fibres.
0.0
Unfortunately, the available studies on the s h e a r -
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 moment interaction of HSC beams have not given full
information and details regarding the failure mode of the
Shear Span to Depth Ratio ( a / d ) tested beams under shear. In most cases, the reported failure
(a) F=O.O. mode is mentioned in a general description and is related
only to the variation in a/d. However, this study shows that
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 the failure mode is significantly dependent on, among other
3.5 parameters, a/d, p and F. In addition, there is no general
e~ consensus concerning the definition and description of the
different failure types of HSC beams under the combined
0
3.0 effect of shear and moment. These reasons have made it
difficult to verify the proposed shear domain by worldwide
,,4
test results. However, some clear test data concerning the
2.5 failure mode of HSC beams without fibres have been col-
lected from Cornell University, New York Jj as shown in
Table 3. When these test data were applied to the proposed
2.0 model to predict the failure modes, a close agreement with
~Z
the observed failure modes was noted as shown in
Figure 13.
"~ 1.5

7. Longitudinal bars - fibres interaction

l.O
It is time now to investigate the particular interaction
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 $
between longitudinal reinforcement ratio (p) and steel
Shear Span to Depth Ratio ( a / d ) fibres (F). The arising question is: what is the optimum
(b) F =0.5625. quantity of steel fibres to be added to a reinforced HSC
beam without stirrups to make it safe in shear'? In fact, the
Figure 10 Shear domain as a/d versus #
surface in Figure 8 which represents the envelope of shear
effect, shows the important relationship between the three
plotted in Figure 9(a) for p = 0 . 0 1 8 7 , f . = l l 0 M P a , main parameters p, F, and a/d. Thus, the points on this
f,. = 550 MPa, and Figure 9(b) indicates the domain when surface represent optimum choices which produce a safe
p = 0.0308, f . = 110 MPa, f,. = 550 MPa. On the other hand, and economic design of a beam without stirrups. Any point
the shear domain as a/d versus p is shown in Figure lO(a) inside the surface represents shear failure, while the points
and (b) for F = 0.0 and 0.5625, respectively. It can be noted outside it represent safety against shear with increasing
that the function of (a/d)c, see Eq. ( 11 ), is also plotted in margin as we go away from this surface. Consequently, the
Figures 9 and 10. Consequently, by means of such dia- intersection between the surface and the vertical, plane at a
grams, one can easily predict whether flexural failure (FL) given a/d, yields the particular relationship between p, and

Table 2 Test data of high strength concrete beams w i t h o u t stirrups

I II III IV

Group p = 1.87% F= 0.0 p = 1.87% F= 0.5625 p = 3.08% F= 0.0 p = 3.08% F= 0.5625

Beam B14 B9 B8 B10 B15 B5 B4 Bll B1 B2 B3 B13 B16 B6 B7 B12

a/d 1.75 2.5 3.5 4.5 1.75 2.5 3.5 4.5 1.75 2.5 3.5 4.5 1.75 2.5 3.5 4.5
Failure type* SC DT DT DT FL SF FL FL SC DT DT DT SF SC DT DT

*SC = s h e a r - c o m p r e s s i o n failure; DT = diagonal tension; FL = flexural failure; SF = combination of shear and flexural failure
fc= 110MPa, fv=550 MPa, d = 3 O O m m , da= 1 4 m m
Shear domain of fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. Imam e t al. 745

PI2 PI2
_L _1_ a _1
-I
" ! -r

3o22 or 3~a28

A &
I.. 3250
3800
mm
mrn
=! _
I--

Figure 11 Test beams

Figure 12 Combined shear-flexural failure mode in beams B5 and B16

F. Hence, the p:F relationship can be obtained numerically
when the equation of M,/M~= 1.0 [Eq. (12)] is solved for
a given a/d.
In order to determine and generalize the optimum fibre
content which covers all possible values of a/d, it is worth
returning to Figure 9. The top point of the curve in
Figure 9(a) or (b) represents the optimum fibre factor
(F,p,) irrespective of the value of a/d. At this point
(a/d)R=(a/d)L=(a/d)c and F=F,,p,. Accordingly, the
optimum fibre factor (F,p,) can be defined as the value of
746 Shear d o m a i n o f fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. I m a m e t al.

Table 3 Failure m o d e of HSC beams as presented in Ref. 11 22.243 0o/X/'5~! .264 - of,.(2 - ~ ' )
F,,,,, = 1.66 (O.75 - ~ ' ) ( 2 . 1 5 + ~ ' ) (13)
Beam F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 F6 FIO

aid 4.0 4.0 2.0 2.0 6.0 6.0 4.0 where

p 0.012 0.025 0.012 0.025 0.012 0.025 0.033
Failure m o d e DT DT SC SC FL DT DT / Pfv + 2.32Fop,
: 0.85/:
f~= 65.5 MPa, d = 2 7 0 ram, f v = 4 3 4 MPa, d~= 12.7 m m
~o' = p ( 1 + 4F,,;,,)
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
3.5 The solution of Eq. (13) with respect to both variables F,,p,
and p can be developed by iteration. For a given F,,p, the
g 3.0 corresponding p can be obtained with the desired tolerance
o
(e.g. 10-5) by means of a simple computer program.
2.5
Figure 14 shows the relationship between F,;,, and p for a
beam without stirrups ~. = 110 MPa, and f,. = 550 MPa).
Now it becomes easy to determine the value of F,;,, by
2.0
which, a beam with a given p reaches its maximum strength
(M, = M~) irrespective of shear span-to-depth ratio aid. It
ee
m
1.5 can be observed from Figure 14 that, for a beam with
p = 0.0187 ~ = 110 MPa, a n d f v = 550 MPa), the optimum
1.0 fibre volume percentage (~:,p,) is 0.79%. If p is increased
e~
to 0.0308 for the same beam, then the corresponding V/:,,/,,
0.5 becomes 1.26%.

0.0 8. Research needs

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Shear Span to Depth Ratio
Figure 13 Predicted failure m o d e s of HSC beams in refer-
ence 11
F which is able to make a singly reinforced beam without
stirrups attain its full flexural capacity and not fail in shear
regardless of the shear span-to-depth ratio (aid). In fact the
top point in Figure 9(a) or (b) represents only a beam with
one specific reinforcement ratio (e.g. in Figure 9(a),
p = 0 . 0 1 8 7 ) . However, to generalize the value of Fo;,, for
various values of p, thus aid and F in Eq. (12) should be
substituted by (a/d)c and F,p,, respectively. By means of
Eqs. (11) and (12), an implicit nonlinear equation is
developed as:
8 9 10
Due to the shortage of available test data concerning the
(aid)
work outlined in this paper, extended experimental research
is still needed to obtain optimum and economical appli-
cations of S F - H S C . The proposed analytiCal model for the
relative flexural capacity (M,/M/;) as well as the
expressions of both (a/d)c and F,,p, should be examined
and verified by larger sets of experimental work taking into
account the variations of F, p, aid, d, d,, f , and/~..
9. Conclusions
This research concerns shear-moment interaction of fibrous
high-strength concrete beams without stirrups ( f = 50 to
140 MPa). Although the role of steel fibres is focused in
this work, the equations and expressions derived herein are

[
1.2 1.6
f~ =11o ~ [ I
f~ = 5 5 0 ~=,,I 1.4 ~:~
1.0
d==14 ffrfl| q S ~
1.2 ~
" 0.8
i.o ,~..
0.6 o.s

0.6
= 0.4
0.4
©
0.2
0.2
O

0.0 0.0
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5

Longitudinal Reinforcement Ratio ( p ) %

Figure 14 Interaction between longitudinal reinforcement and steel fibre
Shear domain of fibre-reinforced concrete beams: M. Imam et al.
also valid and applicable for non-fibrous concrete beams
(F = 0.0). Within the scope of this paper, the following con-
clusions can be drawn.
(1) Inclusion of steel fibres in HSC beams without stirrups
provides significant improvement of shear resistance
and tends to increase the ultimate strength (M,) in
order to reach the nominal flexural capacity (M~). Steel
fibres can successfully replace the shear reinforcement,
while the use of steel fibres as a complementary
reinforcement of longitudinal bars has not a consider-
able effect.
(2) An analytical equation is developed for the critical
shear span-to-depth ratio (a/d)c at which a beam has
minimum ultimate flexural strength due to shear effect.
The value of (a/d)c depends on fibre factor (F), longi-
tudinal steel ratio (p), and concrete compressive
strength (f.).
(3) The domain of shear effect (F or p versus a/d) for a
given beam, is obtained analytically. By means of this
domain and the equation of (a/d)o the failure mode
of a beam can easily be predicted. Shear-compression
(SC), diagonal tension (DT), and flexural (FL) failure
modes can be distinguished.
(4) A new expression is derived from the optimum per-
centage of steel fibres by which a singly reinforced
beam without stirrups attains its full flexural capacity
and does not fail in shear regardless of shear span to
depth ratio (a/d).
Acknowledgments
The help of the assistant staff in Reyntjens laboratory,
Leuven, is gratefully acknowledged. Special thanks go to
Bertho Philips and Luc Huyse for their devoted assistance.
Bekaert international trade, and Addiment have contributed
materials to this research, and their contributions are grate-
fully acknowledged.
747
References
1 Remmel, G. 'Influence of the tensile behaviour on the shear strength
of longitudinally reinforced concrete members' Darmstadt Concrete,
Annual Journal, 7, pp 257-266
2 Imam, M., Vandewalle, L. and Mortelmans, F. 'Proportioning and
properties of very high strength concrete with and without steel fib-
res' Proceedings of the International Conference, Concrete 2000,
Dundee, Scotland, pp 1693-1705, Sept. 1993
3 Imam, M., Vandewalle, L. and Mortelmans, F. 'Indirect tensile
strength of very high strength concrete' Proceedings of the Inter-
national Symposium on Utilization of High Strength Concrete, Lille-
hammer, Norway, 20-23 June 1993, pp 1114-1121
4 Imam, M., Vandewalle, L. and Mortelmans, F. 'Shear-moment
analysis of reinforced high strength concrete beams containing steel
fibres', Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, 2, June, 1995
5 Russo, G., Zingone, G. and Puleri, G. 'Flexural-shear interaction
model for longitudinally reinforced beams' ACI Structural Journal,
1991, (January/February), 60-68
6 ACI Committee 544, 'Design considerations for steel-fiber reinforced
concrete', American Concrete Institute, Detroit, ACI 544.4R-188,
1988
7 'Commentary on building code requirements for reinforced concrete'
American Concrete Institute, Detroit, AC1 318RM-83, 1983
8 Bazant, Z. and Sun, H. 'Size effect in diagonal shear failure: influence
of aggregate size and stirrups' ACI Material Journal, Proceedings
1987, 84 (4), 259-272
9 Kim, W. and White, R. 'Initiation of shear cracking in reinforced
concrete beams with no web reinforcement' ACI Structural Journal
1991, (May/June), 301-308
10 Ashour, S., Hassanain, G. and Wafa, F. 'Shear behavior of high-
strength fiber reinforced concrete beams' ACI Structural Journal
1992, (March/April), 176-184
11 El Zanaty, A. 'Shear-critical high-strength concrete beams' research
report No. 85-1, Department of Structural Engineering, Cornell Uni-
versity, Ithaca, New York, 1985
12 Shuaib, A. and Lue, D. 'Flexure-shear interaction of reinforced high-
strength concrete beams', ACI Structural Journal 1987,
(July/August), 330-341
13 Fenwick, R. C. and Paulay, T. 'Mechanisms of shear resistance of
concrete beams' Proceedings, ASCE 1968, 94 (STI0), 2325-2350
14. Chung, W. 'Analytical model for diagonal tension failure of
reinforced concrete members under static loads', doctoral thesis,
North Carolina State University, 1992
15 Shin, S., Oh, J. and Ghosh, S. 'Shear behavior of laboratory-sized
high strength concrete beams reinforced with bars and steel fibres',
Fiber reinforced concrete developments and innovations, ACI, SP
142, pp 181-200, 1994
16 Swamy, R. and Mangat, P. 'A theory for the flexural strength of steel
fiber reinforced concrete' Cement and Concrete Research 1974, 4,
313-325