Study on bamboo and steel as hybrid reinforcement for concrete slab

Abstract

For a developing country like Sri Lanka, imported construction material like steel is not cost-effective. The increasing trend in demand for construction material leads to an increase in the consumption of natural resources as well. So, to reduce the steel usage, bamboo can be used as hybrid reinforcement to achieve the benefits of both steel and bamboo, while compensating the disadvantages of each other. Bamboo is selected because of its high tensile strength to weight ratio, less carbon footprint, and rapidly growing ability. In this paper, details of the study carried out to analyze the behavior of three concrete slabs reinforced with steel and bamboo in comparison with the steel alone (control slab) is presented. All four slab specimens with dimensions of 1200 mm * 1200 mm* 60 mm were cast and tested under centerline loading. Flexural behavior of control slab reinforced with steel alone was compared with 3 hybrid-slabs reinforced with a different combination of steel and bamboo. The experimental results of 4 slabs were comparably similar, and these results were used to validate some numerical models too (developed in Midas software). It is concluded that steel and bamboo reinforced hybrid slabs can be used as an effective alternative.