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. 2025 May 15;20(5):e0322450.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0322450. eCollection 2025.

Research on the mechanical properties of hybrid Steel Fiber-Reinforced Self-Compacting Concrete based on the DIC method

Hang Hu  1 , Jianyi Gu  2 , Yang Tu  3 , Yi Zhou  3 , Fuwei Zhu  3
Affiliations

Research on the mechanical properties of hybrid Steel Fiber-Reinforced Self-Compacting Concrete based on the DIC method

Hang Hu et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

To investigate the influence of hybrid steel fibers on the mechanical properties of self-compacting concrete, this study systematically compared the mechanical performance of ordinary self-compacting concrete, single steel fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete, and three types of hybrid steel fiber-reinforced self-compacting concrete through cube compression tests, four-point bending tests, and elastic modulus tests. The digital image correlation (DIC) method was employed to accurately measure the surface displacement and strain of the specimens. The results indicate that the self-compacting hybrid steel fiber concrete specimens exhibited excellent flexural-tensile performance. The incorporation of steel fibers significantly inhibited the development of macroscopic cracks, enhanced the crack resistance of the concrete, and effectively improved its brittleness. Particularly, when the fiber content was 1% 6mm + 1% 13mm + 1% 25mm, the compressive strength increased by 41.15%, the flexural strength increased by 266.41%, and the elastic modulus reached 40.82 MPa. Using the DIC method, this study successfully captured the full-field strain evolution during the failure process of the specimens. Based on the evolution of the maximum principal strain, the dynamic evolution characteristics of macroscopic and microscopic cracks on the specimen surface were thoroughly analyzed. The study found that the enhancement effect of hybrid steel fibers (HF) on concrete is primarily manifested in hindering the propagation of macroscopic cracks. This research provides important theoretical foundations and practical guidance for the engineering application of self-compacting concrete.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Steel fibers with different aspect ratios.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Slump expansion of steel fiber self-compacting concrete.
Fig 3
Fig 3. J-ring expansion of steel fiber self-compacting concrete.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Compression failure pattern of concrete cube specimens.
Fig 5
Fig 5. The relationship between the compressive strength value and the volumetric content of steel fiber.
Fig 6
Fig 6. Concrete flexural failure pattern.
Fig 7
Fig 7. The relationship between the tensile elastic modulus and the volumetric content of steel fiber.
Fig 8
Fig 8. Elastic Modulus test loading of self-compacting steel fiber concrete.
Fig 9
Fig 9. The relationship between the elastic modulus and the volumetric content of steel fiber.
Fig 10
Fig 10. The relationship between the tension-compression ratio and the volume content of steel fiber.
Fig 11
Fig 11. Evolution process of surface strain field at different stages of cubic compressive test.
Fig 12
Fig 12. Comprehensive effect of fiber content on self-compacting concrete.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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