ABSTRACT
The paper presents a study of application of Fiber Reinforced Concrete (FRC) in foundation slabs through experimental tests and numerical simulations. The fibers are the main reinforcement to take up bending moments and shear stresses in the structural fiber applications. A series of full-scale tests of foundation slabs reinforced with either steel fibers, a composite mineral fiber or ordinary rebars were performed at NTNU. Comparisons between the test results and simplified methods based on recommendations from COIN, NB38, DAfStb, and the recently launched draft of the new Eurocode 2, showed that the calculation methods are highly conservative for the moment capacity. The numerical simulations are performed to investigate the structural behavior under ultimate limit states (ULS). A numerical model closely representing the test setup was established in the finite element software DIANA and the simulation results were compared with test results for fiber reinforced, rebar reinforced and plain concrete foundations. A parameter study has been performed to investigate the effect of shear stiffness of the isolation layer on the structural behavior of the foundations. The research work provide basis for technical approval for application of Structural Fiber Reinforced Concrete (SFRC) in foundation slabs and may contribute to increase use of fibers in load carrying structures.
