Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

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Construction and Building Materials

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Experimental study on durability of fiber reinforced concrete: Effect of

cellulose fiber, polyvinyl alcohol fiber and polyolefin fiber
Haiyan Xu , Zhijie Wang *, Zimeng Shao , Libin Cai , Hesong Jin , Zengzhao Zhang , Zhihong Qiu ,
Xiaohao Rui , Tiewei Chen
School of Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu 610031, China

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The durability of concrete reinforced by cellulose fiber (CTF), polyvinyl alcohol fiber (PF) and polyolefin fiber
Durability (VS) is comprehensively studied in this paper. Relevant durability tests are conducted to explore the effect of
Fiber reinforced concrete different fiber types and dosages on durability performance demonstrated in the resistance to drying shrinkage,
Hybrid fiber
water permeability, crack, carbonization and chloride ion penetration. Besides single fiber reinforced concrete,
Cellulose fiber
Polyvinyl alcohol fiber
synergistic effect of hybrid fibers on durability is also studied, and the service life of fiber reinforced concrete in
Polyolefin fiber carbonization environment and chloride ion corrosive environment is further predicted. In addition, the structure
Service life prediction of fiber reinforced concrete is analyzed from the micro perspective by using the optical and electron microscope.
The results showed that: (1) The addition of CTF can effectively enhance the all five aspects of durability per­
formance, including the resistance to drying shrinkage, water permeability, crack, carbonization and chloride ion
penetration. The addition of PF can enhance the durability properties except for chloride ion penetration
resistance. Generally, though with few exceptions, the increased dosage of CTF or PF would improve the
strengthening effect on the durability of single fiber reinforced concrete. The addition of VS can either enhance
or weaken the above five aspects of durability properties, and its effect varies much with the fiber dosage. (2)
Hybrid fiber is found to have a positive synergistic effect and enhance the above five aspects of durability
properties of concrete. The concrete reinforced with the hybrid fiber combination of 1.2 kg/m3 CTF, 2.0 kg/m3
PF and 2.0 kg/m3 VS may achieve the optimal durability properties. (3) CTF, PF and VS, especially their hybrid
combinations, are found to effectively prolong the service life of concrete structure in the carbonization and
chloride ion corrosive environment. The research findings obtained in this paper can supplement the study on the
durability of fiber reinforced concrete, and provide suggestions for suitable fiber type and dosage selection in
actual engineering designs of fiber reinforced concrete.

1. Introduction thus undermining the durability of concrete structures [10,14,15].

Fiber reinforced concrete is widely used in engineering structures for
its favorable mechanical and durability properties [1–6]. Many re­
searches have been conducted on the durability of fiber reinforced
concrete, and it is concluded that the reasonable use of fiber can effec­
tively enhance the durability [7–11]. Compared with ordinary rein­
forced concrete where the corrosion of steel rebar is one of the main
reasons for serious deterioration of structures, fiber reinforced concrete
demonstrates better abilities of crack control and corrosion resistance
[10,12–15]. For ordinary reinforced concrete, cracks occurring on
structures (e.g., underwater tunnels) provide access to water and cor­
rosive agents such as chlorides to permeate further into the structure,
However, for fiber reinforced concrete, according to Nguyen et al. [14],
crack faces can be well bridged by the short and discontinuous fibers and
thus requiring more stress to propagate. The ability of crack resistance of
fiber reinforced concrete is well illustrated and supported by studies
such as Berrocal et al. [16], Miyazato and Hiraishi [17]. The addition of
fiber can inhibit the occurrence and development of micro cracks, and
improve the crack resistance of concrete.
Fiber reinforced concrete also demonstrates other fair qualities of
durability in terms of drying shrinkage, chloride ion penetration, water
permeability, abrasion resistance, and impact resistance. For instance,
Yousefieh et al. [18] found the addition of steel, polypropylene and
polyolefin fibers limited the drying shrinkage cracking and deferred the

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: zhjWang@home.swjtu.edu.cn (Z. Wang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2021.124867
Received 21 June 2021; Received in revised form 5 September 2021; Accepted 6 September 2021
Available online 14 September 2021
0950-0618/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Table 1
Mineral compositions of cement, fly ash and mineral powder.
Material Mineral compositions/%

SiO2 Fe2O3 Al2O3 MgO CaO Na2O K2O TiO2 P2O5 MnO SrO SO3

Cement 20.01 3.20 5.68 0.81 65.89 0.09 1.17 — 0.08 0.19 — 2.00
Fly ash 62.04 4.28 25.5 1.27 3.96 0.46 — 1.33 0.31 — 0.12 0.73
Mineral powder 34.11 0.83 15.36 6.58 35.99 0.40 0.62 2.41 — 1.07 0.12 2.50

prolong the time for chloride ions to reach the surface of the rebar and
Table 2
thus reducing the corrosion rate when the dosage is low. However, once
Physical and mechanical properties of cellulose fiber, polyvinyl alcohol fiber and
the chloride ions arrive on the surface of rebars, the polyolefin fiber
polyolefin fiber.
cannot resist the corrosion process on the concrete structure. Sadrinejad
Fiber Type Density/ Equivalent Average Tensile Elastic et al. [31] studied the durability of polyolefin and polypropylene hybrid
(g/cm3) diameter/ length/ strength modulus/
μm mm /GPa GPa
fiber reinforced concrete, and found that the mixed use of polypropylene
and polyolefin fiber can enhance durability performance.
Cellulose 1.10 18 2.1 0.96 8.5
However, there is no current research available which studies
fiber
(CTF-960) durability of cellulose fiber (CTF), polyvinyl alcohol fiber (PF) and
Polyvinyl 0.97 30 9 3.1 ~ 4.5 110 ~ 118 polyolefin fiber (VS) of different dosage, as well as their synergistic ef­
alcohol fect as hybrid fibers. In this paper, the effect of single, double and triple
fiber (PF- mixed fiber of different dosage on the durability of concrete is studied by
2000)
Polyolefin 0.92 1000 30 2.6 ~ 3.9 112 ~ 120
conducting tests of drying shrinkage, water permeability, cracking,
fiber (VS- carbonization and chloride ion penetration. At the same time, the optical
3000) and electron microscope are used to analyze the structure of fiber
reinforced concrete from the micro perspective. The results can provide
guidance for the optimal application of cellulose fiber, polyvinyl alcohol
initial cracking time. Nahhab and Ketab [19] found that the increase of
fiber and polyolefin fiber reinforced concrete in engineering.
micro steel fiber content led to lower drying shrinkage but higher water
permeability. Afroughsabet and Ozbakkaloglu [20] studied poly­
2. Experimental program
propylene and steel fiber and concluded that steel fiber significantly
decreases the electrical resistivity of concrete. The impact and abrasion
The materials and specimens reported in this paper are part of a
resistance of concrete with polyvinyl alcohol fiber reinforcement, as was
larger study. Mechanical properties of the same mixes have been re­
reported Raj et al. [21], increased when compared with that of plain
ported previously [26]. Mix designs and details of the materials pre­
concrete.
sented in this paper are repeated from Xu et al. [26]; presented here for
Hybrid fiber reinforced concrete, where multiple types of fibers of
clarity.
different physical and mechanical properties are used, may reach the
optimal state of durability [22,23]. For example, hybrid fiber was found
2.1. Materials
to be effective in increasing corrosion initiation time and endows con­
crete with better crack resistance [12,14]. The hybrid fiber mixture of
Fiber reinforced concrete mainly includes the following components:
macro synthetic fiber and polypropylene fiber, according to Kim et al.
fiber, fine and coarse aggregate, cement, fly ash, mineral powder, water,
[24], produced better chloride ion penetration resistance and impact
water reducing agent [26]. The cement is the PO 42.5 grade ordinary
resistance than the micro synthetic fibers alone. However, dosages of
Portland cement which meets the requirements of General Portland
fibers involved need to be well studied to ensure that the hybrid fiber
Cement (GB175-2007). The density of fly ash is 2.059 g/cm3, meeting
reinforced concrete produces the desired outcome, since excessive
the requirements of Fly Ash Used in Cement and Concrete (GBT 1596-
amount of fiber, for instance, can damage the pore structure of concrete,
2017). The chemical composition of mineral powder, fly ash and cement
which reduces the resistance to chloride ion erosion [25]. There are
is shown in Table 1. The water used is ordinary tap water, which meets
some researches that probe into the optimal combination of hybrid fi­
the Standard of Water for Concrete (JGJ 63-2006). The water reducer has
bers and their dosage, e.g., the study by Afroughsabet and Ozbakkaloglu
a water reduction rate of 25%, which meets the requirements of Poly­
[20] which discovered that the mixture with 0.3% polypropylene fibers
carboxylates High Performance Water-reducing Admixture (JG/T 223-
and 0.7% steel fibers exhibited the lowest water absorption among all
2017). Fine aggregate is well-graded river sand with a fineness modulus
fiber reinforced concretes studied. In another study [21], the mixture
of 2.6. Coarse aggregate is well-graded gravel with a nominal diameter
with 0.3% polyvinyl alcohol fibers and 0.2% coir performed better than
of 5 ~ 25 mm, which meets the Standard for Technical Requirements and
any other mixtures in terms of impact and abrasion resistance.
Test Method of Sand and Crushed Stone (or Gravel) for Ordinary Concrete
Cellulose fiber, polyvinyl alcohol fiber and polyolefin fiber rein­
(JGJ 52-2006). The fiber used in the test includes cellulose fiber (CTF-
forcement exhibit favorable qualities in engineering [26–28]. Cellulose
960), polyvinyl alcohol fiber (PF-2000) and polyolefin fiber (VS-3000).
fiber reinforced concrete was found to fair ability to reduce crack width
The main parameters of the fiber are shown in Table 2, and the fiber
significantly [29]. Hybrid reinforced concrete containing polyvinyl
profile is shown in Fig. 1.
alcohol fibers shows better resistance to chloride ion penetration,
abrasion and impact when compared with that containing poly­
2.2. Mix proportion
propylene fibers, according to the research finding of Kim and Park [22].
Similarly, Teng et al. [10] studied hybrid fiber reinforced concrete
Three different kinds of fiber, CTF, PF and VS, are used to explore
containing polyvinyl alcohol fiber and found that the electrical re­
their individual or synergistic effect on durability of fiber reinforced
sistivity of hybrid reinforced concrete was lower than those without
concrete. A total of 23 mixtures are designed as shown in Table 3, in
hybrid fiber reinforcement. Lin and Cheng [30] investigated the influ­
which the No.1 mixture involves specimens of plain concrete where no
ence of polyolefin fiber of different dosage on the corrosion behavior of
fiber is used, mixtures No. 2 ~ No. 14 are used for single fiber reinforced
cement-based composites and found that the polyolefin fiber can
concrete specimens, mixtures No. 15 ~ No. 21 for concrete specimens

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 1. Profile of CTF, PF and VS.

Table 3
Mixture design for test specimens.
No. Mixtures Cement/kg Fly ash/kg Mineral powder/kg Fine aggregate /kg Coarse aggregate /kg Water reducer/kg Water/kg

1 CTF0PF0VS0 340.1 30.1 60.2 673.0 1031.0 11.0 167.1

2 CTF1.0PF0VS0 339.2 29.8 60.5 673.6 1030.9 11.4 166.8
3 CTF1.2PF0VS0 340.1 30.2 59.8 671.6 1031.4 10.9 167.3
4 CTF1.5PF0VS0 340.3 30.5 60.4 674.3 1030.5 11.2 166.9
5 CTF1.8PF0VS0 339.7 29.6 59.8 673.0 1031.0 10.8 167.1
6 CTF2.0PF0VS0 340.2 29.9 60.1 673.0 1030.3 10.9 167.9
7 CTF0PF1.0VS0 340.4 30.2 60.3 674.0 1030.3 11.0 166.8
8 CTF0PF2.0VS0 339.9 29.8 60.5 673.4 1031.2 10.9 167.2
9 CTF0PF3.5VS0 339.7 30.2 60.4 672.1 1031.0 11.4 166.8
10 CTF0PF4.0VS0 339.5 29.9 60.1 672.6 1031.8 10.8 166.9
11 CTF0PF0VS1.0 340.2 30.3 59.4 673.4 1030.0 10.6 167.3
12 CTF0PF0VS2.0 339.2 30.3 59.9 672.0 1030.6 10.9 166.9
13 CTF0PF0VS3.5 340.3 29.7 59.6 671.5 1030.4 11.2 167.1
14 CTF0PF0VS4.5 339.3 30.1 60.5 671.8 1031.5 11.3 167.0
15 CTF1.0PF1.0VS0 340.1 29.6 59.5 671.0 1030.4 10.8 166.7
16 CTF1.0PF2.0VS0 340.2 30.2 60.2 673.6 1032.0 11.0 167.3
17 CTF1.2PF1.0VS0 339.8 29.8 59.7 672.2 1031.0 10.6 166.6
18 CTF1.2PF2.0VS0 340.4 30.3 60.5 673.3 1031.9 11.3 166.8
19 CTF1.2PF3.5VS0 339.9 29.7 59.7 671.6 1030.0 11.2 167.6
20 CTF1.5PF1.0VS0 340.2 30.1 60.2 672.9 1030.8 11.0 166.9
21 CTF1.5PF2.0VS0 339.5 29.8 59.6 671.9 1032.1 10.8 167.2
22 CTF1.2PF2.0VS2.0 340.6 30.5 60.2 673.6 1032.4 10.8 166.9
23 CTF1.2PF3.5VS3.5 340.5 29.9 59.5 672.6 1030.6 11.4 167.0

Fig. 2. Profile of the non-contact concrete shrinkage deformation tester (unit: mm).

reinforced with either two kinds of fibers, and mixtures No. 22 ~ No. 23
for those reinforced with all three kinds of fibers. The dosages set for CTF
are 1.0 kg/m3 (0.09%), 1.2 kg/m3 (0.11%), 1.5 kg/m3 (0.14%), 1.8 kg/
m3 (0.16%) and 2.0 kg/m3 (0.18%), while those for PF are 1.0 kg/m3
(0.10%), 2.0 kg/m3 (0.21%), 3.5 kg/m3 (0.36%) and 4.0 kg/m3 (0.41%),
and those for VS are 1.0 kg/m3 (0.11%), 2.0 kg/m3 (0.22%), 3.5 kg/m3
(0.38%) and 4.5 kg/m3 (0.48%). The set dosages are determined with
reference to reported findings in previous studies, and cover the range in
which cellulose fiber [32–34], polyvinyl alcohol fiber [27,35] and
polyolefin fiber [26,28] were found to exhibit optimal mechanical
properties. Fiber reinforced concrete specimens are named by the
combination of the fiber type and dosage used in the specimen. For

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H. Xu et al.
Fig. 3. Test blocks in the resistance to water permeability test and the profile of the trapezoidal plate.
Fig. 4. Profile of test device for crack resistance test (unit: mm).
example, CTF1.0PF1.0VS0 indicates that the concrete is reinforced with
1.0 kg/m3 CTF and 1.0 kg/m3 PF, while no VS is used.
2.3. Test equipment and methods
A few tests are conducted to measure the durability according to the
requirements of Standard for Test Methods of Long-term Performance and
Durability of Ordinary Concrete (GB/T 50082-2009), including the drying
shrinkage test, water permeability test, crack resistance test, carbon­
ization test and chloride ion penetration test. At the same time, optical
microscope OLYMPUS BX53M and electron microscope KYKY-EM3200
are used to observe the microstructure of fibers in the concrete, the
bond between the fiber and the concrete matrix, and the development of
hydration. The durability of fiber reinforced concrete is characterized by
both macroscopic test results and microscopic observation.
The preparation and curing process of the specimens conforms to the
provisions of the Standard for Test Method of Mechanical Properties on
4
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
Ordinary Concrete (GB/T 50081-2016). The shaking table and mixer are
in accordance with the provisions of Vibrating Table for Concrete Test
(JG/T 245-2009) and Mixers for Concrete Test (JG 244-2009) respec­
tively. The tests involved are briefly described below.
2.3.1. Drying shrinkage test
The prism specimen with a size of 100 mm × 100 mm × 515 mm is
used for the drying shrinkage test, with 3 specimens in a group. The test
adopts a non-contact concrete shrinkage deformation tester (see Fig. 2).
First of all, lubricating oil is brushed inside the test mold and two layers
of plastic film are laid, and the mixture is poured into the mold and
leveled. Then the specimens with the mold are placed in the curing room
with the temperature of 21℃ and the relative humidity of 62%. The
initial reading on the left and right sides of the specimen is measured at
the initial setting of concrete, and then the deformation reading on both
sides of the specimen is measured at the time interval of 1 h. The average
value of the three specimens in a group is taken as the final shrinkage
H. Xu et al.
Fig. 5. The equipment of chloride ion penetration test.
Fig. 6. The profile of test tank (unit: mm).
value of the fiber reinforced concrete specimen.
2.3.2. Water permeability test
The water permeability test adopts an automatic-pressure concrete
penetrometer. The splitting test is conducted on the test blocks, 6 in a
group, after which the permeated height is measured with the aid of a
trapezoidal plate. The trapezoidal plate is made of transparent materials,
and is marked with 10 equally spaced straight lines perpendicular to the
bottom line of the plate (see Fig. 3). The test blocks have an internal
diameter of 175 mm on the upper surface and 185 mm on the lower
surface, and a height of 150 mm. After the mold is removed, the cement
slurry film on both sides is brushed off and the blocks are then put into
the curing room. After 28 days of curing, a layer of cement and butter is
then evenly coated on the surface of the blocks. The concrete pene­
trometer is started and the water pressure is under constant control of
1.2 MPa within 24 h. The splitting test is then carried out along the
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Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
diameter direction of the blocks, and the water mark of the blocks after
splitting is traced with a waterproof pen. The trapezoidal plate is placed
on the splitting surface, and the permeated height is measured by the ten
lines on the trapezoidal plate. The average value of permeated height
measured by ten lines is taken as the height for each test block, and the
arithmetic average value of permeated height of the 6 test blocks in a
group is taken as the final measured value for the permeated height of
the specimen.
2.3.3. Crack resistance test
In the crack resistance test, thin plate specimens with the size of 800
mm × 600 mm × 100 mm are made and used, 2 in a group. The test
device is shown in Fig. 4. A steel mold is used for the test, and the four
sides of the mold are welded by channel steel and are fixed with the
bottom plate by bolts. There are 7 crack inducers in the mold, which are
parallel to the short edge of the mold. The surface of the bottom plate is
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Table 4 Determine Chloride Coulomb Electric Flux of Concrete (JG/T 261-2009).

Overview of experimental program. The specimen in this test is a cylinder with a diameter of 100 mm and a
Test Mixtures Number of Total number Measured test height of 50 mm. The specimen is installed in the test tank (see Fig. 6).
involved test of test parameters The 3.0% NaCl solution and the 0.3 mol/L NaOH solution are respec­
specimens specimens tively injected into the test chamber shown in Fig. 6. The test chamber
per mixture involved
containing the NaCl solution is connected to the negative electrode,
Drying No.1 to 3 23*3 = 69 drying while that containing the NaOH solution is connected to the positive.
shrinkage test No.23 shrinkage rate The current value is recorded every 5 min in 6 h. The curve between the
Water No.1 to 6 23*6 = 138 permeated
permeability No.23 height
current value and time is obtained, and the electric flux in 6 h are
test calculated by curve integral.
Crack resistance No.1 to 2 23*2 = 46 total cracking Table 4 provides a summary of the durability tests involved in the
test No.23 area experimental program, the number of specimens in each type of test, as
Carbonization No.1 to 12 23*12 = 276 carbonization
well as the measured parameters profiling the durability performance of
test No.23 depth
Chloride ion No.1 to 3 23*3 = 69 electric flux fiber reinforced concrete.
penetration No.23
test 3. Results

The reinforcement of single and hybrid fiber on the durability of

Table 5 concrete, which is demonstrated by the changes in durability parameters
Drying shrinkage rate of specimens reinforced with single fiber. obtained from the tests, is analyzed in this section. The impact of
No. Mixtures Drying shrinkage rate/(×10− 6) ηa different fiber dosage and fiber types on concrete durability are studied,
and the optimal fiber dosage with regard to achieving the optimal state
Average value Standard deviation
of durability is obtained. Microstructure analysis is also conducted to
1 CTF0PF0VS0 352 4.24 —
study the effect of fiber from a micro perspective.
2 CTF1.0PF0VS0 323 5.35 0.082
3 CTF1.2PF0VS0 294 2.83 0.165
4 CTF1.5PF0VS0 285 4.55 0.190
3.1. Effect of single fiber on concrete durability
5 CTF1.8PF0VS0 282 10.20 0.199
6 CTF2.0PF0VS0 281 6.16 0.202
7 CTF0PF1.0VS0 316 5.35 0.102 The effect of single fiber on concrete durability, demonstrated by the
8 CTF0PF2.0VS0 282 4.55 0.199 improvement in resistance to drying shrinkage, water permeability,
9 CTF0PF3.5VS0 276 4.55 0.216
crack, carbonization and chloride ion penetration, is firstly studied. To
10 CTF0PF4.0VS0 273 3.74 0.224
11 CTF0PF0VS1.0 313 3.27 0.111
better quantify the enhancing effect of fiber on durability properties of
12 CTF0PF0VS2.0 301 9.42 0.145 concrete, a reduction coefficient is defined as Eq. (1).
13 CTF0PF0VS3.5 346 7.48 0.017
14 CTF0PF0VS4.5 378 4.90 − 0.074 η = (fx0 − fx )/fx0 (1)

Where η is the reduction coefficient of a durability property parameter,

laid with polyethylene film as an isolation layer. Concrete is poured into
the mold which is then placed in a curing room with a temperature of
21℃ and a relative humidity of 62%. The position of the fan and the
wind speed are adjusted 30 min after specimen forming to ensure that
the wind speed 100 mm above the center of the specimen surface is 5 m/
s, and the wind direction is parallel to the specimen surface and the
crack inducer. Water is added to the specimen and the crack length is
measured with a steel ruler 24 h after. Crack width is measured using a
MG 10085-1 microscope with light source and scale interval of 0.005
mm.
fx0 is the test value of plain concrete specimens on a durability property
parameter, and fx is the test value of single fiber reinforced concrete
specimens. The reduction coefficient represents the reduction degree of
a certain durability property parameter measured in the tests. If η is
greater than 0, it means the durability property parameter of fiber
reinforced concrete, for example, the drying shrinkage rate or perme­
ated height, is lower in value than that of plain concrete. In other words,
the fiber plays a positive role in enhancing the durability property of
concrete. On the contrary, if η is less than 0, the fiber has a weakening
effect on the concrete durability.

2.3.4. Carbonization test
The carbonization test employs a concrete carbonization test cham­
ber, which conforms to the requirements of Carbonization Test Chamber
of Concrete (JG/T 247-2009). The specimens are prism blocks of 100
mm × 100 mm × 300 mm, 3 in a group. After standard curing for 28
days, the specimens are placed in an oven with the temperature set at
60℃ for drying for 48 h. After the specimens are dried, all surfaces
except the upper surface are sealed with heated paraffin wax, and then
parallel lines are drawn and spaced 10 mm apart on the side surfaces of
the specimens for the measurement of carbonization depth. A cutting
machine is used to break the mold on the 3rd, 7th, 14th, and 28th day.
1% phenolphthalein alcohol solution is sprayed on the rupture surface
and the carbonization depth are measured 30 s after, accurate to 0.5
mm.
2.3.5. Chloride ion penetration test
The equipment involved in the chloride ion penetration test is shown
in Fig. 5. The test data is automatically collected by the concrete electric
flux intelligent tester, which meets the requirements of Apparatus to
3.1.1. Effect of single fiber on drying shrinkage resistance
Table 5 shows the drying shrinkage rate for concrete specimens
reinforced with single fiber, including average value, standard devia­
tion, as well as the reduction coefficient. Fig. 7 clearly characterizes the
change of drying shrinkage rate and reduction coefficient with fiber
dosage. Compared with plain concrete, concrete specimens reinforced
with CTF perform better in resistance to drying shrinkage, and as indi­
cated by the reduction coefficient, the reinforcement of CTF is stronger
when the dosage increases. When the fiber dosage of CTF is 1.0 kg/m3,
1.2 kg/m3, 1.5 kg/m3, 1.8 kg/m3 and 2.0 kg/m3, the reduction co­
efficients of drying shrinkage are 0.082, 0.165, 0.190, 0.199 and 0.202,
respectively. In the range of 1.5 ~ 2.0 kg/m3, the reinforcing effect of
CTF on drying shrinkage remains relatively stable.
The case of PF is similar to that of CTF. With the increase of dosage of
PF, the reinforcing effect increases until the dosage increases to 3.5 ~
4.0 kg/m3 where the effect remains relatively stable. By contrast, a high
dosage of VS may cause adverse effect on the resistance to drying
shrinkage, as is found in the tests. When the fiber dosage of VS is not
more than 3.5 kg/m3, VS plays a positive role in refining drying

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 7. Change of drying shrinkage rate and its reduction coefficient of specimens with fiber dosage.

CTF is 1.0 kg/m3, 1.2 kg/m3, 1.5 kg/m3, 1.8 kg/m3 and 2.0 kg/m3, the
Table 6
reduction coefficients of permeated height are 0.047, 0.061, 0.081,
Permeated height of specimens reinforced with single fiber.
0.198 and 0.232, respectively. As far as the test results shows, the fiber
No. Mixtures Permeated height/cm ηb dosage of CTF higher than 1.8 kg/m3 may achieve a better result in
Average value Standard deviation terms of water permeability.
1 CTF0PF0VS0 5.70 0.11 — The case of PF is also very similar to that of CTF. With the increase of
2 CTF1.0 PF0VS0 5.43 0.08 0.047 dosage of PF, the reinforcing effect increases, and when the fiber dosage
3 CTF1.2 PF0VS0 5.35 0.10 0.061 increases to 4.0 kg/m3, the reduction coefficient reaches the largest,
4 CTF1.5 PF0VS0 5.24 0.13 0.081 0.295. The reinforcement of VS is a little different from those of CTF and
5 CTF1.8 PF0VS0 4.57 0.15 0.198
PF. The reinforcing effect is not obvious when the fiber dosage is small
6 CTF2.0 PF0VS0 4.38 0.08 0.232
7 CTF0PF1.0VS0 0.11 0.035 (no more than 2.0 kg/m3), and the effect becomes significant when the
8 CTF0PF2.0VS0 5.50 0.06 0.147 dosage increases to 3.5 kg/m3. Though VS plays a positive role in
9 CTF0PF3.5VS0 4.86 0.16 0.240 specimens with different dosages, it seems the reinforcing effect be­
10 CTF0PF4.0VS0 4.33 0.15 0.295
comes to weaken when the dosage increases to 4.5 kg/m3. 3.5 kg/m3 can
11 CTF0PF0VS1.0 4.02 0.07 0.014
12 CTF0PF0VS2.0 5.62 0.11 0.016 be regarded as the optimal fiber dosage for VS given the performance of
13 CTF0PF0VS3.5 5.61 0.10 0.158 specimens in water permeability.
14 CTF0PF0VS4.5 4.80 0.08 0.100 Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of
5.13 permeated height with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of perme­
ated height of CTF, PF and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage can
shrinkage while it seems to aggravate drying shrinkage when the fiber be accurately characterized by cubic, quadratic, and cubic polynomial,
dosage is 4.5 kg/m3. The reinforcing effect becomes more significant respectively, with the goodness of fit of 0.97, 0.99 and 0.89 (see Fig. A.2
when the dosage increases to 2.0 kg/m3, and then such reinforcement in appendix). The fitting results can be used to predict the permeated
begins to weaken and shows a negative effect when the dosage increases height of concrete reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical engineering
to 4.5 kg/m3. 2.0 kg/m3 can be regarded as the optimal fiber dosage for to characterize water permeability.
VS given the performance of specimens in drying shrinkage.
Curve fitting is further conducted to characterize the variation of 3.1.3. Effect of single fiber on crack resistance
drying shrinkage with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of drying Fig. 9 shows the specimens in the crack resistance test. The crack
shrinkage rate of CTF, PF and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage length is measured by a steel ruler, and the crack width is measured by a
can be accurately characterized by cubic, cubic and quadratic poly­ reading microscope. Table 7 lists the number of cracks, maximum crack
nomial, respectively, with the goodness of fit of 0.97, 0.99 and 0.95 (see length, maximum crack width and total cracking area of single fiber
Fig. A.1 in appendix). The fitting results can be used to predict the drying reinforced concrete specimens, as well as the reduction coefficient of
shrinkage rate of concrete reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical total cracking area. Compared with plain concrete, fiber obviously im­
engineering to characterize the drying shrinkage resistance. proves the crack width resistance, although the reinforcing effect on
crack length is not obvious. The maximum crack width of fiber rein­
3.1.2. Effect of single fiber on water permeability forced concrete is significantly smaller than that of plain concrete. With
Table 6 shows the permeated height for concrete specimens rein­ the addition of fiber, fine cracks rather than major cracks tend to occur,
forced with single fiber, including average value, standard deviation, as which is beneficial to the crack resistance of concrete structures.
well as the reduction coefficient. Fig. 8 shows the change of permeated The change of total cracking area and reduction coefficient with fiber
height and reduction coefficient with fiber dosage. Compared with plain dosage is illustrated in Fig. 10. For CTF, the reinforcing effect on crack
concrete, CTF has a positive effect on the resistance to water perme­ resistance first increases with fiber dosage, and then weakens when the
ability, and as indicated by the reduction coefficient, the reinforcement dosage increases beyond 1.5 kg/m3. As far as the test result shows, a low
of CTF is stronger when the dosage increases. When the fiber dosage of dosage of CTF (below 1.0 kg/m3) can hardly cause positive effect on

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 8. Change of permeated height and its reduction coefficient of specimens with fiber dosage.

Fig. 9. Specimens of single fiber reinforced concrete on crack resistance.

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Table 7
Performance of single fiber reinforced concrete specimens on crack resistance.
No. Mixtures Number of cracks Maximum crack length/mm Maximum crack width/mm Average of total cracking area /(mm2/m2) ηc

1 CTF0PF0VS0 8 582 0.640 924 –

2 CTF1.0PF0VS0 7 600 0.540 934 − 0.011
3 CTF1.2PF0VS0 7 600 0.340 693 0.250
4 CTF1.5PF0VS0 7 600 0.480 544 0.411
5 CTF1.8PF0VS0 7 565 0.420 809 0.124
6 CTF2.0PF0VS0 7 555 0.380 913 0.011
7 CTF0PF1.0VS0 7 600 0.380 759 0.178
8 CTF0PF2.0VS0 7 600 0.480 604 0.346
9 CTF0PF3.5VS0 5 440 0.160 167 0.820
10 CTF0PF4.0VS0 5 280 0.150 109 0.882
11 CTF0PF0VS1.0 6 600 0.450 722 0.219
12 CTF0PF0VS2.0 6 600 0.440 583 0.369
13 CTF0PF0VS3.5 7 600 0.400 1058 − 0.145
14 CTF0PF0VS4.5 6 600 0.420 1031 − 0.116

Fig. 10. Change of total cracking area and reduction coefficient of specimens with fiber dosage.

Fig. 11. Fiber reinforced concrete specimens at different carbonization ages (No.16 mixture: CTF1.0PF2.0VS0).

9
H. Xu et al.
Fig. 12. Measured carbonization depth of single fiber reinforced specimens at different carbonization ages.
crack resistance, and a very high dosage (above 2.0 kg/m3) may even
have an adverse effect. The dosage of 1.5 kg/m3 may have the optimal
effect of crack resistance where the reinforcing effect of CTF is the most
obvious. The increased dosage may not have the similar effect for PF
which, as is found in the tests, has stronger reinforcing effect on crack
resistance when the dosage increase. The PF shows excellent quality in
crack resistance which is improved by 88.2% when the dosage is 4.0 kg/
m3, comparing with plain concrete.
As for VS, it can have a reinforcing effect on crack resistance when
the dosage is below 3.5 kg/m3, while it can also have a negative effect
when the dosage is above 3.5 kg/m3. The enhancement is most signifi­
cant when the dosage is 2.0 kg/m3 where the reduction coefficient of the
total cracking area is the largest, 0.369. The size of VS is much larger
than that of CTF and PF. When the fiber dosage is large, this charac­
teristic of large size may generate gaps between fiber and the concrete
matrix which, leads to poor contact and the micro-cracks expansion.
Sadrinejad et al. [31] also had the similar finding that the coarse poly­
olefin fiber tends to weaken the durability of fiber reinforced concrete.
Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of total
10
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
cracking area with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of permeated
height of CTF, PF and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage can be
accurately characterized by cubic, quadratic, and cubic polynomial,
respectively, with the goodness of fit of 0.83, 0.99 and 0.86 (see Fig. A.3
in appendix). The fitting results can be used to predict the total cracking
area of concrete reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical engineering
to characterize crack resistance.
3.1.4. Effect of single fiber on carbonization resistance
Fiber reinforced concrete specimens are broken to determine the
carbonization depth when the carbonization age reached the 3rd, 7th,
14th and 28th day. The appearances of some specimens are shown in
Fig. 11, and the average carbonization depth of single fiber reinforced
concrete specimens measured on the 3rd, 7th, 14th and 28th day is
presented in Fig. 12. With the increase of carbonization age, the
carbonization depth of fiber reinforced concrete specimens shows an
increasing trend. At the same carbonization age, the carbonization depth
of concrete specimens reinforced with CTF, PF or VS basically increases
with the fiber dosage, despite small local fluctuation.
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 13. Variation of carbonization depth and reduction coefficient with fiber dosage at the carbonization age of 28 days.

The variation of carbonization depth and reduction coefficient with

Table 8
fiber dosage at the carbonization age of 28 days is shown in Fig. 13. With
Electric flux of single fiber reinforced concrete specimens.
the increase of fiber dosage, CTF always plays a positive role in resisting
No. Mixtures Electric flux/C ηe carbonization resistance, and its effect strengthens with dosage. For
Average value Standard deviation example, the reduction coefficient reaches 0.266 when the dosage of
1 CTF0PF0VS0 1807 41.58 — CTF is 2.0 kg/m3, indicating the resistance to carbonization improves by
2 CTF1.0PF0VS0 1742 18.02 0.036 more than 25%. This finding coincides with the research of Lee and Kim
3 CTF1.2PF0VS0 1704 17.38 0.057 [36], who found the carbonization speed of cellulose fiber reinforced
4 CTF1.5PF0VS0 1663 39.30 0.080 concrete is much slower and the carbonization depth is lower than those
5 CTF1.8PF0VS0 1425 24.10 0.211
6 CTF2.0PF0VS0 1368 14.70 0.243
of plain concrete.
7 CTF0PF1.0VS0 1834 27.43 − 0.053 By comparison, PF is similar to CTF in terms of carbonization per­
8 CTF0PF2.0VS0 1771 29.20 0.020 formance, which enhances the resistance with the increase of fiber
9 CTF0PF3.5VS0 1902 77.27 − 0.053 dosage. The largest reduction coefficient is 0.309 when the dosage
10 CTF0PF4.0VS0 2008 98.25 − 0.111
reaches 4.0 kg/m3. For VS, it hardly has any reinforcing effect on
11 CTF0PF0VS1.0 1792 35.22 0.008
12 CTF0PF0VS2.0 1783 30.51 0.013 carbonization resistance when the dosage is small (1.0 kg/m3), but it
13 CTF0PF0VS3.5 1282 65.10 0.291 gradually strengthens with the increase of dosage. The reduction co­
14 CTF0PF0VS4.5 1254 57.10 0.306 efficients, though small in value when compared with that of CTF and
PF, reaches 0.15 when the dosage is highest, 4.5 kg/m3.

Fig. 14. Variation of electric flux and reduction coefficient with fiber dosage.

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Table 9
Durability performance and its reduction coefficient of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete.
No. Mixtures Drying ηa Permeated ηb Total cracking ηc Carbonization depth ηd Electric ηe
shrinkage/(×10- height/cm area/(mm2/m2) (28 days)/mm flux/C
6
)

15 CTF1.0PF1.0VS0 262 0.256 3.38 0.407 710 0.232 3.03 0.350 1398 0.226
16 CTF1.0PF2.0VS0 267 0.241 3.42 0.400 302 0.673 2.84 0.391 1445 0.200
17 CTF1.2PF1.0VS0 255 0.276 3.27 0.426 555 0.399 3.13 0.328 1329 0.265
18 CTF1.2PF2.0VS0 260 0.261 3.34 0.414 284 0.693 2.89 0.380 1337 0.260
19 CTF1.2PF3.5VS0 278 0.210 3.46 0.393 176 0.810 2.56 0.451 1391 0.230
20 CTF1.5PF1.0VS0 248 0.295 3.22 0.435 554 0.400 3.21 0.311 1320 0.270
21 CTF1.5PF2.0VS0 252 0.284 3.28 0.425 263 0.715 3.05 0.345 1329 0.265
22 CTF1.2PF2.0VS2.0 229 0.349 3.05 0.465 112 0.879 2.56 0.451 1283 0.290
23 CTF1.2PF3.5VS3.5 246 0.301 3.11 0.454 84 0.909 2.61 0.440 1319 0.270

Table 10
Durability enhancement effect coefficient of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete.
No. Mixtures R

Dry shrinkage resistance Impermeability Early crack resistance Carbonization resistance Resistance to chloride penetration

15 CTF1.0PF1.0VS0 0.163 0.366 0.148 0.233 0.216

16 CTF1.0PF2.0VS0 0.081 0.286 0.446 0.243 0.175
17 CTF1.2PF1.0VS0 0.139 0.377 0.182 0.171 0.240
18 CTF1.2PF2.0VS0 0.075 0.299 0.382 0.207 0.226
19 CTF1.2PF3.5VS0 0.007 0.198 0.136 0.230 0.255
20 CTF1.5PF1.0VS0 0.140 0.373 0.082 0.141 0.228
21 CTF1.5PF2.0VS0 0.089 0.306 0.341 0.165 0.219
22 CTF1.2PF2.0VS2.0 0.179 0.388 0.546 0.332 0.264
23 CTF1.2PF3.5VS3.5 0.178 0.275 0.585 0.274 0.160

Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of
carbonization depth with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of
carbonization depth of CTF, PF and VS reinforced concrete at the
carbonization age of 28 days with fiber dosage can be accurately char­
acterized by quadratic, cubic, and quadratic polynomial, respectively,
with the goodness of fit of 0.97, 1.00 and 0.99 (see Fig. A.4 in appendix).
The fitting results can be used to predict the carbonization depth of
concrete reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical engineering to
characterize carbonization resistance.
3.1.5. Effect of single fiber on chloride ion penetration
Table 8 shows the measured electric flux of single fiber reinforced
concrete specimens, as well as the reduction coefficient. The change of
electric flux and reduction coefficient with fiber dosage is summarized in
Fig. 14. The reduction coefficient of electric flux gradually increases
with the fiber dosage of CTF, indicating CTF enhances the chloride ion
penetration resistance of concrete better in a higher dosage. When the
fiber dosage is 1.0 kg/m3, 1.2 kg/m3, 1.5 kg/m3, 1.8 kg/m3 and 2.0 kg/
m3, the reduction coefficients are 0.036, 0.057, 0.080, 0.211 and 0.243,
respectively. Lee and Kim [36] also drew a similar conclusion that the
chloride ion penetration resistance can be improved by the increase of
cellulose fiber dosage.
For PF, the reinforcing effect cannot be much expected. PF in the
dosage of 2.0 kg/m3 enhances the chloride ion penetration resistance by
only 2%, and lower and higher dosages than 2.0 kg/m3 all seem to
weaken the chloride ion penetration resistance of concrete. The result of
VS is similar to that of CTF. It is also worth noting that the reinforcing
effect is particularly obvious when the fiber dosage is relatively high
(4.5 kg/m3, 0.46%). This finding is consistent with that in Lin and Cheng
[30] which concluded that concrete reinforced with polyolefin fiber in
the dosage of 0.4% had a better corrosion resistance to chloride ion.
Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of elec­
tric flux with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of electric flux of CTF,
PF and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage can be accurately
characterized by quadratic, cubic, and cubic polynomial, respectively,
with the goodness of fit of 0.96, 1.00 and 0.95 (see Fig. A.5 in appendix).
The fitting results can be used to predict the electric flux of concrete
reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical engineering to characterize
resistance to chloride ion penetration.
3.2. Effect of hybrid fiber on concrete durability
As is reported in the previous section, the durability of single fiber
reinforced concrete is either strengthened or weakened under different
fiber types and dosages. In the appropriate range of fiber dosage,
different types of fibers can be mixed and used in concrete. Hybrid fibers
may produce positive synergistic effect and further enhance the dura­
bility of concrete. Based on the research on the durability of single fiber
reinforced concrete, the durability of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete is
further studied. In order to quantitatively analyze the synergistic effect
of hybrid fiber, the durability enhancement effect coefficient R of hybrid
fiber is defined as follows:
R = η − (η1 φ1 + η2 φ2 + η3 φ3 + ...) (2)
φi =
mi
(3)
m
φ1 + φ2 + φ3 + ... = 1 (4)
Where, R is the durability enhancement effect coefficient of hybrid fiber;
η is reduction coefficient of a durability property parameter for hybrid
fiber, and ηi refers to the reduction coefficient when only fiber i is used.
φi is the mass percentage of fiber i in the hybrid fiber. mi is the dosage
(kg/m3) of fiber i while m is the total dosage of the hybrid fiber (kg/m3).
When R > 0, the hybrid fiber has a positive synergistic effect on the
durability of concrete, and the higher value of R indicates that the
positive synergistic effect is more obvious. On the contrary, when R < 0,
hybrid fiber has a negative synergistic effect on the durability of
concrete.
The statistical results of durability property parameters and reduc­
tion coefficient of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete are shown in Table 9.
The enhancement effect coefficients R of hybrid fiber reinforced con­
crete are further calculated to quantitatively characterize the synergistic
effect of hybrid fiber (see Table 10). All the calculated R coefficients are

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H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 15. Comparison between the fitting and test data of durability performance parameters.

greater than zero, indicating the hybrid fibers have positive synergistic
effect in every aspect of durability property.
The hybrid effect of mixed CTF-PF and its variation with fiber type
and dosage are analyzed. With regard to the influence of PF dosage on
durability, the calculated results of specimens with No. 15 and 16
mixtures show that the enhancement effect coefficients of drying
shrinkage, water permeability and chlorine ion penetration decrease by
50.3%, 21.9% and 19.0%, respectively when the dosage of CTF remains
1.0 kg/m3 and that of PF increases from 1.0 kg/m3 to 2.0 kg/m3, while
those of crack resistance and carbonization increase by 201.4% and
4.3%, respectively. Comparing results of specimens with No. 17, 18 and
19 mixtures where the dosage of CTF is 1.2 kg/m3, the enhancement

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H. Xu et al.
Fig. 16. Microstructures of fiber reinforced concrete under optical microscope.
effect coefficients of drying shrinkage and water permeability decrease
by 95.0% and 47.5%, respectively when the dosage of PF increases from
1.0 kg/m3 to 3.5 kg/m3, while that of crack resistance first increases by
109.9% (PF dosage = 2.0 kg/m3) and then decreases by 64.4% (PF
dosage = 3.5 kg/m3). The enhancement effect coefficient of carbon­
ization improves by 34.5%, while that of chlorine ion penetration first
decreases by 5.8% (PF dosage = 2.0 kg/m3) and then increases by 12.8%
(PF dosage = 3.5 kg/m3). Comparing results of specimens with No. 20
and 21 mixtures where the dosage of CTF is 1.5 kg/m3, the enhancement
effect coefficients of drying shrinkage, water permeability and chlorine
ion penetration decrease by 36.4%, 18.0% and 3.9%, respectively when
the dosage of PF increases from 1.0 kg/m3 to 2.0 kg/m3, while those of
crack resistance and carbonization increase by 315.9% and 17.0%,
respectively.
Similarly, the influence of CTF dosage on the durability of CTF-PF
hybrid fiber reinforced concrete can be obtained. Comparing results of
specimens with No. 15, 17 and 20 mixtures where the dosage of PF is 1.0
kg/m3, the enhancement effect coefficient of carbonization decreases by
39.5% when the dosage of CTF increases from 1.0 kg/m3 to 1.5 kg/m3,
while that of resistance to drying shrinkage first decreases by 14.7%
(CTF dosage = 1.2 kg/m3) and then increases by 0.7% (CTF dosage =
1.5 kg/m3). The enhancement effect coefficients of water permeability,
crack resistance and chlorine ion penetration first increase by 3.0%,
23.0% and 11.1%, respectively (CTF dosage = 1.2 kg/m3), and then
decrease by 1.1%, 54.9%, and 5.0% (CTF dosage = 1.5 kg/m3).
Comparing results of specimens with No. 16, 18 and 21 mixtures where
the dosage of PF is 2.0 kg/m3, the enhancement effect coefficients of
crack resistance and carbonization decrease by 23.5% and 32.1%
respectively when the dosage of CTF increases from 1.0 kg/m3 to 1.5 kg/
m3, while that of water permeability increases by 7.0%. The enhance­
ment effect coefficient of drying shrinkage first decreases by 7.4% (CTF
dosage = 1.2 kg/m3), and then increases by 15.7% (CTF dosage = 1.5
kg/m3), while that of chlorine ion penetration first increases by 29.1%
(CTF dosage = 1.2 kg/m3), and then decreases by 3.1% (CTF dosage =
1.5 kg/m3).
To sum up, generally for CTF-PF hybrid fiber reinforced concrete, the
increase of PF dosage from 1.0 kg/m3 to 2.0 kg/m3 may weaken the
enhancement effect of hybrid fiber on resistance to water permeability,
drying shrinkage and chlorine ion corrosion while reinforce that of crack
14
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
and carbonization resistance. By contrast, the increase of CTF dosage
from 1.0 kg/m3 to 1.5 kg/m3 may weaken the enhancement effect on
carbonization resistance; firstly weaken the reinforcement on drying
shrinkage resistance and then strengthen it; and firstly strengthen the
reinforcement on resistance to chlorine ion penetration and then weaken
it.
On the basis of the analysis of CTF-PF fiber reinforced concrete, the
durability of CTF-PF-VS fiber reinforced concrete, characterized by the
durability enhancement effect coefficient, is further studied. Specimens
which have 2.0 kg/m3 VS mixed in them (No. 22 mixture) performed
better in terms of durability than specimens which have 1.2 kg/m3 CTF
and 2.0 kg/m3 PF (No.18 mixture). The measured and calculated sta­
tistics of these two specimens show that the addition of VS improves the
resistance to drying shrinkage, water permeability, crack, carbonization
and chlorine ion penetration by 138.7%, 29.8%, 42.9%, 60.4% and
16.8%, respectively. The durability of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete is
further enhanced. Comparing specimens which have 3.5 kg/m3 VS (No.
23 mixture) with specimens of No. 19 mixture, it is found that the
addition of VS improves the resistance to drying shrinkage, water
permeability, crack, carbonization and chlorine ion penetration by
2442.9%, 38.9%, 330.1%, 19.1% and − 37.3%, respectively. The dura­
bility is well enhanced except for the resistance to chlorine ion pene­
tration. On the whole, on the basis of CTF-PF double-mixed fiber
reinforced concrete, the addition of VS can enhance its comprehensive
durability, but some individual aspect of durability may be weakened,
which may be related to the dosage of VS and the fiber hybrid effect.
Sadrinejad et al. [31] also reached a similar conclusion in terms of the
influence of fiber dosage on hybrid effect. They found that the mixed use
of polypropylene fiber (e.g., 0.1%) and polyolefin fiber (e.g., 0.9%) with
a certain fiber dosage can control the weakening effect of polyolefin
fiber and enhance the durability of concrete structure. However, when
the fiber dosage is high, the mixed use of polypropylene fiber and
polyolefin fiber will produce negative synergistic effect and weaken the
durability of concrete.
Further, the calculation formulas for drying shrinkage rate, perme­
ated height, total cracking area, 28-day carbonization depth and electric
flux of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete are obtained, respectively, as
shown in Eq. (A.1) ~ (A.5) in appendix. The fitting accuracy is high, with
the goodness of fit being 0.840, 0.854, 0.898, 0.934 and 0.824,
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 17. Microstructures of fiber reinforced concrete under electron microscope.

respectively.
The fiber dosages used in the 23 mixtures are substituted into Eq.
(A.1) ~ (A.5) respectively, and predicted values of the durability
parameter of fiber reinforced concrete are obtained accordingly. The
predicted values and measured mean values are compared and analyzed
(see Fig. 15). The vertical coordinate in Fig. 15 is the ratio of the
predicted value or the measured value to the sum of the two. The closer
the result is to 50%, the higher the prediction accuracy is. Except for
local differences between the predicted and measured values of the total
cracking area, the predicted and measured values of the durability pa­
rameters are quite close, and the difference and fluctuation are very
small. On the whole, the prediction accuracy of the calculation formula

15
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. 18. Prediction results of service life of fiber reinforced concrete in the carbonization environment.

Fig. 19. Predicted service life of fiber reinforced concrete structures in chloride ion corrosive environment.

obtained is high. These equations can realize the prediction of the
durability parameters of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete based on the
used fiber dosage, and the influence degree and trend of different fiber
types and dosages on different durability performance parameters can
also be obtained.
3.3. Micro structure analysis of fiber reinforced concrete
The optical microscope OLYMPUS BX53M is used for the analysis of
micro structures of the fiber reinforced concrete (see Fig. 16). It can be
observed from Fig. 16(a) that a large amount of fine aggregate in plain
concrete adheres to the cement matrix, and is doped with a large number
of white C-S-H compound crystals, with obvious collapse holes on the
surface. In addition, in the process of concrete forming, micro-cracks
randomly occur, and there is a relatively weak contact interface be­
tween cement and matrix. The inconsistent evaporation of internal
water leads to uneven volume contraction and the gradual development
of cracks, leading to cracks. Therefore, the comprehensive durability of
plain concrete is poor.
Fig. 16(b)~(d) reveals the status that the CTF, PF and VS in fiber
reinforced concrete are closely adhered to matrix. According to the
scanning electron microscopy images, the fiber is surrounded by dense
C-S-H compounds, crystal compounds such as Ca(OH)2 and Aft, as well
as aggregate substances. Their disordered distribution among the fibers
forms a stable constraint system. Since a large number of compounds are
filled between the fiber and the matrix, the materials in the reinforced
concrete can work as a strong integrity. It can be seen that there are
pores on the surface of concrete though, but the bond between fiber and
matrix remedies the pore in matrix to some extent, so the durability of
fiber reinforced concrete is better than that of plain concrete.
According to Fig. 16(e) and (f), the effect of single fiber on the
control of early shrinkage cracks is different because of different char­
acteristics of CTF, PF and VS. When CTF and PF are mixed, synergistic
effect can be produced between fibers since different fibers are

16
H. Xu et al.
interwoven and distributed in the matrix, which to some extent in­
creases the contact area between the fibers and the matrix, and makes up
for the pore defect. Therefore, CTF and PF can jointly inhibit the
occurrence and propagation of microcracks. When micro cracks coalesce
to form macroscopic fractures, VS can play the role of “bridging” be­
tween macroscopic fractures, which can supplement the properties of
CTF-PF hybrid fiber to achieve a better hybrid effect.
An electron microscope (KYKY-EM3200) is used to conduct meso-
scale analysis of the fiber reinforced concrete structure (see Fig. 17). As
shown in Fig. 17(a), there are micro-cracks, holes and some unhydrated
fly ash particles, which may be one of the reasons for its poor durability.
Fig. 17(b)~(f) reveals the bond between fiber and concrete matrix in
fiber reinforced concrete. A large number of C-S-H crystals are enriched
on the fiber surface where some fine aggregates are attached. Fig. 17(b)
and (c) show that there are hydration products attached to the surface of
the hybrid fiber. The more hydration products are attached to the fiber
surface, the rougher the fiber surface is, and the stronger the mutual
bond between the fiber and the matrix becomes. In addition, the fibers
are randomly distributed in the matrix, and the dispersed hybrid fiber
forms a network structure, which is fully cohesive and consolidated with
the concrete matrix. Besides, due to sufficient moisture, the water film at
the interface will gradually thickens, and the Ca(OH)2 generated by
cement hydration will be enriched and precipitated into crystals, which
will then be accumulated in the pores between the fiber and cement
slurry, resulting in a relatively dense structure. Fig. 17(c) shows the
failure modes of fiber: (I) fiber breakage. The rough fracture surfaces of
the ends of the fiber can be observed. (II) fiber slip. the slip surface of
fiber and the matrix can clearly be seen.
It can be observed from Fig. 17(d)~(f) that, for single fiber rein­
forced concrete, the internal structure of PF reinforced concrete is dense,
with good overall integrity and few initial defects. Fiber has an obvious
effect on the durability of concrete. By comparison, the internal struc­
ture of CTF reinforced concrete has more pore defects than that of PF
reinforced concrete. VS reinforced concrete has more internal defects,
which may facilitate the entry of corrosive ions into the concrete matrix
and thus leading to relatively poor durability. By observing the micro­
structure of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete, significantly fewer initial
micro-cracks are found in the hybrid fiber reinforced concrete, which
may contribute to its better durability as is measured in the tests.
4. Discussion
The durability of concrete to a certain extent determines the service
life of concrete structures. In actual engineering cases, it usually costs a
large amount of time and money to maintain damaged concrete struc­
tures caused by environmental or material factors. Therefore, the suc­
cessful evaluation and prediction of the service life of concrete under the
action of various possible deterioration factors is the premise to ensure
that the concrete structure can maintain its structural performance
during its designed service life. Based on the test results of the durability
of fiber reinforced concrete, the durability of fiber reinforced concrete in
carbonization and chloride ion corrosive environments is further eval­
uated, and its service life is also predicted.
4.1. Durability evaluation of fiber reinforced concrete in the
carbonization environment
Based on Fick’s first diffusion law and the absorption characteristics
of carbon dioxide in porous media of concrete, Alexeev proposed a
theoretical model of concrete carbonization [37]. According to this
model, the carbonization depth of concrete refers to a certain depth
range at which substances on the concrete surface react with the
intrusive carbon dioxide, and the differential relationship is shown in
Eq. (5) below
m0 ⋅dxC = NCO2 ⋅dt (5)
17
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
Where m0 is the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by concrete per unit
volume (mol/m3 ) when carbonization reaction is complete; NCO2 is the
diffusion flux of carbon dioxide in concrete (mol⋅m− 2 ⋅s− 1 ). In other
words, at the carbonization depth xc , all the carbon dioxide diffused into
the concrete in the time period dt is absorbed by the substances in the
concrete within the length range of dxc . According to Fick’s first diffu­
sion law and concrete carbonization theoretical model, the classical
prediction model of concrete carbonization depth can be further ob­
tained Luo and Liu [38] as shown in Eq. (6):
√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
2De,CO2 C0 √̅
xC = t (6)
m0
Where, xc is the carbonization depth of concrete (m); De,CO2 is the
effective diffusion coefficient of carbon dioxide in concrete (m2 /s2 ); C0 is
the carbon dioxide concentration (%) on the concrete surface, and t is
the carbonization time (s). According to the carbonization and erosion
mechanism of concrete and the classical prediction model of carbon­
ization depth, it is assumed that when the carbonization depth of con­
crete reaches concrete protective layer, the remaining life of concrete
structure is 0. Combined with Eq. (6), the service life prediction formula
of fiber reinforced concrete in the carbonization environment is estab­
lished, as shown in Eq. (7):
mi a2si
ti = (7)
2Di C0
Where ti is the service life of fiber reinforced concrete; mi is the amount
of carbon dioxide absorbed by concrete per unit volume (mol/m3) in the
case of complete carbonization; asi is the thickness (mm) of the protec­
tive layer of fiber reinforced concrete; asi is the effective carbon dioxide
diffusion coefficient (m2/s), and C0 is the carbon dioxide concentration
(%) on the concrete surface. Based on the Standard for Test Methods of
Long-term Performance and Durability of Ordinary Concrete (GB/T 50082-
2009), the carbonization resistance of fiber reinforced concrete is
characterized by the carbonization depth of fiber reinforced concrete
standard specimens in CO2 medium with specific concentration after 28
days. The carbon dioxide concentration used in this carbonization test is
20%. With reference to the actual engineering project this research relies
on, the carbon dioxide concentration on the surface of fiber reinforced
concrete structure is set as 2% and the thickness of concrete protective
layer is 50 mm. The test results of 28-day carbonization depth are then
taken into Eqs. (6) and (7). The prediction results of service life of the
fiber reinforced concrete in the carbonization environment are calcu­
lated (see Fig. 18).
It can be seen from Fig. 18 that the addition of fibers can effectively
increase the service life of concrete in the carbonization environment,
whether it being single or hybrid fiber reinforced concrete. For single
fiber reinforced concrete, its service life in the carbonization environ­
ment increases with fiber dosage. Compared with VS, CTF and PF have a
more significant effect on the service life of fiber reinforced concrete in
the carbonization environment. Compared with plain concrete, the
service life of fiber reinforced concrete increases by 85.7% when the CTF
dosage is 2.0 kg/m3, by 45.8% when the PF dosage is 2.0 kg/m3, and by
6.3% when the VS dosage is 2.0 kg/m3.
For CTF-PF reinforced concrete, it can be found by comparing results
of specimens with mixtures No. 15 and 16, No. 17, 18 and 19, and No.20
and 21 that when the CTF dosage remains unchanged, the increase of PF
dosage can significantly increase the service life of CTF-PF reinforced
concrete. By contrast, comparing results of specimens with mixtures No.
15, 17 and 20, and No.16, 18 and 21 where PF dosage remains un­
changed, the increase of CTF dosage could make the service life of CTF-
PF reinforced concrete decrease slightly. To sum up, for CTF-PF rein­
forced concrete in the carbonization environment, the increase of CTF
dosage may reduce the service life of fiber reinforced concrete, while the
increase of PF dosage can increase the service life.
H. Xu et al.
For CTF-PF-VS reinforced concrete in the carbonization environ­
ment, the comparison between results of specimens with mixtures No.
18 and 22 shows that when the mixing dosage of CTF-PF hybrid fiber
remains unchanged, the addition of VS increases the service life of
hybrid fiber reinforced concrete. However, by comparing results of
specimens with mixtures No. 19 and 23 where the mixing dosage of CTF-
PF hybrid fiber remains unchanged, it is found that the addition of VS
reduces the service life of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete. The influence
of VS on the service life of CTF-PF hybrid fiber reinforced concrete in the
carbonization environment is different due to the different mixing
dosage of CTF-PF hybrid fiber, and its influence needs to be further
explored.
Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of service
life with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of service life of CTF, PF
and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage can be accurately char­
acterized by quadratic, cubic, and quadratic polynomial, respectively,
with the goodness of fit of 0.96, 0.99 and 0.99 (see Fig. A.6 in appendix).
The fitting results can be used to predict the service life of concrete
reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in practical engineering.
4.2. Durability evaluation of fiber reinforced concrete in chloride ion
corrosive environment
According to Fick’s second law, the service life of fiber reinforced
concrete in chloride ion corrosive environment can be calculated by the
following Eq. (8):
x
C(x, t) = CS ⋅[1 − erf ( √̅̅̅̅̅)]
2 Dt
Where C(x, t) is the chloride ion concentration (%) at time t and depth x;
Cs is the concentration of chloride ions on the exposed surface (%), and
× is the depth (mm); erf (⋅)stands for the error function, and D is the
diffusion coefficient of chloride ion ( × 10− 9 cm2 /s). Combined with Eq.
(8), the prediction formula of service life for fiber reinforced concrete
structure in chloride ion corrosive environment is obtained, as shown in
Eq. (9):
aSi
Cl = CS ⋅[1 − erf ( √̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅)]
2 Di ti
Where, Cl is the critical chloride ion concentration (%) on the rebar
surface, while Cs is the chloride ion concentration (%) on the exposed
surface of fiber reinforced concrete. asi is the thickness (mm) of the
concrete protective layer; Di is the chloride ion diffusion coefficient ( ×
10− 9 cm2 /s). ti is the service life of fiber reinforced concrete, and erf(⋅)is
the error function. The variation of chloride ion diffusion coefficient
with electric flux (6 h) in chloride ion corrosive environment and its
curve fitting results are shown in Fig. A.7 in appendix. The goodness of
fit of the curve obtained is 0.86, which can well characterize the vari­
ation. The chloride ion diffusion coefficient of fiber reinforced concrete
of different fiber types and dosage can then be obtained after
substituting the measured electric flux into the fitting curve. The chlo­
ride ion concentration on the rebar surface is taken as 0.1%, and that on
the exposed surface is 0.22%. The predicted service life of fiber rein­
forced concrete structures in chloride ion corrosive environment is ob­
tained (see Fig. 19).
For single fiber reinforced concrete in chloride ion corrosive envi­
ronment, its service life increases with the dosage of CTF and VS, and
shows a “decreasing-increasing-decreasing” trend with the PF dosage.
When the dosage of CTF and VS is relatively large (e.g., CTF dosage
being 1.8 ~ 2.0 kg/m3; VS dosage being 3.5 ~ 4.5 kg/m3), their effect on
service life is more significant. When the PF dosage is 2.0 kg/m3, the
service life of fiber reinforced concrete is the maximum, so 2.0 kg/m3
can be regarded as the optimal PF dosage. The results can provide
guidance for the selection of fiber type and dosage in chloride ion cor­
rosive environment.
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
For CTF-PF reinforced concrete in chloride ion corrosive environ­
ment, comparing results of specimens with mixtures No.15 and 16,
No.17, 18 and 19, and No.20 and 21 where the dosage of CTF is fixed,
the service life of CTF-PF reinforced concrete can be slightly reduced
with the increase of PF dosage. By contrast, the increase of CTF content
could slightly increase the service life of CTF-PF reinforced concrete (see
mixtures No.15, 17 and 20; No. 16, 18 and 21). For CTF-PF-VS rein­
forced concrete in chloride ion corrosive environment, it is found when
the mixing dosage of CTF-PF remains unchanged, the service life of
hybrid fiber reinforced concrete slightly increases with the addition of
VS (see mixtures No.18 and 22; No. 19 and 23).
Curve fitting is also conducted to characterize the variation of service
life of single fiber reinforced concrete in chloride ion corrosive envi­
ronment with fiber dosage. It is found the variation of service life of CTF,
PF and VS reinforced concrete with fiber dosage can all be accurately
characterized by cubic polynomials, with the goodness of fit of 0.97,
0.97 and 0.95 (see Fig. A.8 in appendix). The fitting results can be used
to predict the service life of concrete reinforced with CTF, PF or VS in
chloride ion corrosive environment.
5. Conclusion
This paper studies the effect of CTF, PF and VS on the durability
performance of fiber reinforced concrete demonstrated in resistance to
drying shrinkage, water permeability, crack resistance, carbonization
and chloride ion penetration. The synergistic effect of hybrid fiber on the
durability of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete is discussed, and the ser­
(8) vice life of fiber reinforced concrete is predicted. Major findings of this
paper are as follows:
(1) The addition of CTF can enhance the durability performance in
all the five aspects, and the strengthening effect varies with the
fiber dosage. Except for the crack resistance on which higher
dosage of CTF may reduce its strengthening effect, CTF can
gradually improve the durability performance in other four as­
pects with the increased dosage. 1.5 kg/m3 may be the optimal
dosage of CTF for crack resistance. By comparison, the addition of
PF can enhance the durability properties excluding resistance to
(9)
chloride ion penetration, and the strengthening effect can in­
crease with the fiber dosage. 2.0 kg/m3 may be the optimal
dosage of PF for chloride ion corrosion resistance. The effect of VS
on the durability of concrete varies much with the fiber dosage.
VS can gradually improve the strengthening effect on carbon­
ization and chloride ion corrosion resistance with the increase of
fiber dosage. The VS fiber reinforced concrete can have the
optimal durability performance on resistance to drying
shrinkage, water permeability and crack when the fiber dosage is
2.0 kg/m3, 3.5 kg/m3 and 2.0 kg/m3, respectively.
(2) Hybrid fiber is found to have a positive synergistic effect and
enhance the above five aspects of durability properties of con­
crete. For CTF-PF reinforced concrete, the strengthening effect on
water permeability, drying shrinkage and chloride ion penetra­
tion resistance weakens with the increase of PF dosage, while that
on crack and carbonization resistance continues to improve. By
comparison, with the increase of CTF dosage, the enhancing ef­
fect on drying shrinkage resistance first weakens and then
strengthens, while that on chloride ion penetration resistance
first strengthens and then weakens, and that on carbonization
resistance continues to weaken. For CTF-PF-VS reinforced con­
crete, CTF1.2PF2.0VS2.0 may be the optimal combination for
achieving the best durability performance, which is proved to be
better that that of CTF-PF reinforced concrete. It is observed by
using optical microscope and electron microscope that hybrid
fiber reinforced concrete has fewer initial microcracks and more
hydration products adhered on the fiber surface when compared
18
H. Xu et al.
with single fiber reinforced concrete, which may contribute to its
favorable performance on durability.
(3) In the carbonization environment, the addition of CTF, PF and VS
can effectively extend the service life of concrete structures. The
service life of single fiber reinforced concrete in carbonized
environment increases with the increase of fiber content. CTF and
PF have a more significant effect on the service life extension in
the carbonization environment when compared with VS. The
service life of CTF-PF reinforced concrete decreases with CTF
dosage but extends with PF dosage.
In the chloride ion corrosive environment, the service life of single
fiber reinforced concrete can be prolonged with the increase of CTF or
VS dosage. High dosage of PF may reduce the service life of single fiber
reinforced concrete. The service life extension of fiber reinforced con­
crete is more significant when the used dosage is 1.8 ~ 2.0 kg/m3 for
CTF, 3.5 ~ 4.5 kg/m3 for VS, and 2.0 kg/m3 for PF. The addition of VS
can slightly prolong the service life of CTF-PF reinforced concrete.
The research supplements the study on the durability of fiber rein­
forced concrete, and provides reference for fiber type and dosage se­
lection for different durability requirements in actual engineering cases.
First of all, it is suggested to consider the addition of high-performance
fiber to the concrete members which have greater durability require­
ment. The research finding suggest that adding CTF into the matrix
concrete can enhance drying shrinkage resistance, permeability resis­
tance, early cracking resistance, carbonization and chloride ion corro­
sion resistance, which makes it applicable to a wide range of scenarios,
such as tunnel shotcrete and lining in marine environments, etc. PF,
however, is not recommended to apply in chloride ion corrosive envi­
ronment. The effect of VS on the durability varies with dosage, and the
use of VS depends on specific durability requirements of concrete
structures. For example, in concrete structures with high requirements
on drying shrinkage resistance, the dosage of VS is recommended to be
Appendix
ya = 328.11 − 30.45x1 − 15.47x2 + 3.43x3
yb = 5.73 − 0.85x1 − 0.48x2 − 0.14x3
yc = 888.55 − 94.84x1 − 203.44x2 + 0.36x3
yd = 4.56 − 0.64x1 − 0.36x2 − 0.086x3
ye = 1848.40 − 0.27x1 − 0.0078x2 − 0.11x3
Fig. A1. Fitting curves of the variations of drying shrinkage with fiber dosage.
19
Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867
0.22%. When the dosage exceeds 0.38%, however, the drying shrinkage
of concrete structure would be intensified. Secondly, this study suggests
that the application of CTF, PF and VS in concrete structures has a
positive synergistic effect on the durability of concrete, and can thus
increase the lifespan of concrete in carbonization and chloride ion cor­
rosive environment, with the optimal dosage combination of CTF being
0.11%, PF 0.21%, and VS 0.22%.
CRediT authorship contribution statement
Haiyan Xu: Conceptualization, Methodology, Investigation, Formal
analysis, Writing – original draft, Writing – review & editing. Zhijie
Wang: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Methodology, Project
administration, Resources. Zimeng Shao: Data curation, Methodology,
Writing – review & editing. Libin Cai: Data curation, Formal analysis,
Writing – original draft. Hesong Jin: Methodology, Visualization.
Zengzhao Zhang: Data curation, Supervision. Zhihong Qiu: Data
curation, Validation. Xiaohao Rui: Investigation, Data curation. Tiewei
Chen: Formal analysis, Resources.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation
of China (No. 51678498). The authors would be grateful to the re­
viewers for their valuable suggestions that can help improve the quality
of the paper.
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. A2. Fitting curves of the variations of permeated height with fiber dosage.

Fig. A3. Fitting curves of the variations of total cracking area with fiber dosage.

Fig. A4. Fitting curves of the variations of carbonization depth at the carbonization age of 28 days with fiber dosage.

20
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. A5. Fitting curves of the variations of electric flux with fiber dosage.

Fig. A6. Variation of service life of single fiber reinforced concrete with fiber dosage in carbonization environment.

Fig. A7. Variation of chloride ion diffusion coefficient with electric flux (6 h).

21
H. Xu et al. Construction and Building Materials 306 (2021) 124867

Fig. A8. Variation of service life of single fiber reinforced concrete in chloride ion corrosive environment with fiber dosage.

Where x1, x2 and x3 represent the fiber dosage (kg/m3) of CTF, PF and VS respectively, while ya ~ ye represent the measured durability parameters,
i.e., drying shrinkage rate, permeated height, total cracking area, 28-day carbonization depth and electric flux, respectively.

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