Shear behavior of slender ferro cement box beams

Abstract EN

This study investigated (experimentally and analytically) the influence of mortar compressive strength (37.4, 48.3 and 60.1 MPa) and the number of wire mish layer in web and bottom flange on the shear behavior of ferrocement slender box beams.

To achieve these targets, 12 ferrocement box beams with shear span to effective depth ratio(a/d) of 2.8 (slender beams) are equipped, tested and assessed, all beams having cross section of 300*175 mm, length of 2000 mm and hollow core of 180*115 mm.

The tested beams were divided into four groups, each group consists of three beams depending on compressive strength value, the first group was without wire mish, the second group was with one layer of wire mish in web and bottom flange, the third group was two layers of wire mish in web and one in bottom flange and the fourth group was with two layers of wire mish in web and bottom flange.

As well as ANSYS-11 program was used to analyze these beams by nonlinear finite element method.

Test results showed that, the first cracking and ultimate loads increases as the wire mish layers in web and bottom flange increases, the deflection of the tested beams decreases with increasing mortar compressive strength and wire mish layers in web and bottom flange, the finite element model gives good agreement with the experimental results within 9%.