Adamu Musa, Labib Wafa Abdelmajeed, Ibrahim Yasser E, Alanazi Hani
Engineering Management Department, College of Engineering, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia.
Structures and Materials Research Laboratory, College of Engineering, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia.
Polymers (Basel). 2025 May 15;17(10):1350. doi: 10.3390/polym17101350.
Concrete faces challenges related to brittleness and crack propagation, which compromise its tensile strength and durability. Fiber reinforcement has emerged as a promising solution, yet research on hybrid systems combining natural fibers, such as date palm fiber (DPF), with synthetic polymer fibers, like polypropylene fiber (PPF), remains limited. This study investigates the mechanical and durability performance of concrete reinforced with hybrid DPF and PPF, aiming to address the gap in understanding the synergistic effects of combining natural and synthetic fibers in cementitious materials, and improving the tensile strength and crack resistance of the concrete. Both the DPF and PPF were added at varying dosages (0%, 0.25%, 0.5%, 0.75%, and 1% by weight of cement). Both DPF and PPF reduced the workability, fresh density and compressive strength of concrete, with DPF exhibiting a more significant reduction due to its higher hydrophilicity and poor compatibility with the cement matrix. A maximum reduction of 44.78% was observed in the mix containing 1% DPF and 0.5% PPF. The fibers improved tensile strength and ductility, with mixes containing up to 1% combinations of DPF and PPF showing up to a 14.6% increase in splitting tensile strength and 9.5% improvement in flexural strength compared to the control mix. However, durability was compromised-water absorption increased by up to 58% in hybrid mixes containing 1.5% total fiber content, while pore volume rose by as much as 17.5% compared to plain concrete. These increases were more pronounced with higher DPF content due to its hydrophilic nature and poor cement compatibility. This study highlights the potential of hybrid fibers to improve concrete performance while promoting eco-friendly and cost-effective solutions.
混凝土面临与脆性和裂缝扩展相关的挑战，这会损害其抗拉强度和耐久性。纤维增强已成为一种有前景的解决方案，但关于将天然纤维（如枣椰纤维（DPF））与合成聚合物纤维（如聚丙烯纤维（PPF））结合的混合体系的研究仍然有限。本研究调查了用DPF和PPF混合增强的混凝土的力学性能和耐久性，旨在填补在理解天然纤维与合成纤维在胶凝材料中协同效应方面的空白，并提高混凝土的抗拉强度和抗裂性。DPF和PPF均以不同剂量（按水泥重量的0%、0.25%、0.5%、0.75%和1%）添加。DPF和PPF均降低了混凝土的工作性、新拌密度和抗压强度，由于DPF具有更高的亲水性且与水泥基体的相容性较差，其降低幅度更为显著。在含有1% DPF和0.5% PPF的混合料中，最大降幅达44.78%。纤维提高了抗拉强度和延展性，与对照混合料相比，含有高达1% DPF和PPF组合的混合料的劈裂抗拉强度提高了14.6%，抗弯强度提高了9.5%。然而，耐久性受到了损害——在总纤维含量为1.5%的混合混合料中，吸水率增加了58%，而孔隙体积与素混凝土相比增加了17.5%。由于DPF的亲水性和与水泥的较差相容性，随着DPF含量的增加，这些增加更为明显。本研究突出了混合纤维在改善混凝土性能同时促进环保和经济高效解决方案方面的潜力。
