Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

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Journal of Building Engineering

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Investigating the load-deflection behaviour and drying shrinkage

resistance of HPC reinforced using different cellulose fibres
Thamer Alomayri a, *, Babar Ali b
a Department of Physics, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, 21955, Makkah, Saudi Arabia
b Department of Civil Engineering, COMSATS University Islamabad, 57000, Pakistan

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Keywords: High-performance concrete (HPC) families exhibit superior compressive strength and excellent
Plant/natural fibres durability. However, HPC owing to its higher binder content and dense microstructure shows
Tensile properties brittle failure under tensile loading and is susceptible to volumetric changes under drying shrink-
Residual strength age. The issues related to inferior ductility and lower shrinkage resistance of HPC were resolved
Ductility
by using different types of agro-fibres. This paper examined the influence of different agro-based
Environment
fibres i.e., coconut fibre (CF), jute fibre (JF), and banana fibre (BF) on the flexural-tensile and
drying shrinkage response of HPC. The behaviour of agro fibres was compared with that of syn-
thetic polypropylene fibre (PPF). Investigated parameters include load-deflection response, com-
pressive strength (CS), splitting-tensile strength (STS), drying shrinkage (DS) response, and rapid
chloride ion permeability (RCIP) capacity. The results showed that in overall mechanical perfor-
mance, JF and BF yielded better strength properties than CF and synthetic PPF. The addition of
0.3 vol% of JF and BF increased flexural strength (FS) by more than 20%. In terms of the flexural
behaviour of HPC, both JF and BF owing to their superior tensile strengths showed higher effi-
cacy than the synthetic PPF. Among agro-fibres, JF shows beneficial effects on the shrinkage re-
sistance of HPC. BF and CF were useful in reducing the DS at 0.1% volume, however, the increase
in the volume of these two fibres aggravated the shrinkage problem. As compared to PPF and
other agro-fibres, JF yielded relatively better performance in terms of enhancing strength proper-
ties as well as shrinkage resistance of HPC.

Credit author statement

Thamer Alomayri: Data curation, investigation, writing, and editing original draft, funding; Babar Ali: Investigation, supervi-
sion, writing, and editing original draft, methodology, formal analysis.

1. Introduction
The applications of HPC have increased significantly over the past few years. Owing to optimized mix design and low water-binder
ratio, HPC exhibits better workability and CS and excellent durability as compared to that of the conventional concrete [1,2]. Besides
several benefits, higher ultimate CS of HPC causes sensitivity to early-age cracking and increases the brittleness of concrete, which in
effect can lower the service life of HPC structures [3]. If cracking initiates at the HPC surface, it can be a critical issue for the durabil-
ity of the structure. The presence of cracks on the HPC surface allows easier penetration of harmful substances into the concrete pore

* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: tsomayri@uqu.edu.sa (T. Alomayri), babar.ali@cuisahiwal.edu.pk (B. Ali).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2023.106714
Received 22 March 2023; Received in revised form 18 April 2023; Accepted 30 April 2023
Available online 7 May 2023
2352-7102/© 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

network, which can cause the structure to deteriorate faster and have a shorter lifespan [4]. When HPC undergoes drying shrinkage, it
may result in the formation of cracks and that weakens its resistance against the permeability of harmful substances [5,6]. Incorporat-
ing fibres in the HPC matrix is considered ‘favourable’ to address its shortcomings and ensures better tensile and flexural strength,
ductility, and energy absorption [7–10]. This is achieved by controlling the way cracks progress in concrete.
Typically, fibre-reinforced HPC incorporates steel, polyvinyl alcohol and polypropylene fibres (PPF) as reinforcement. However,
the production of these specialized fibres is expensive and requires a significant amount of energy, thereby contributing significantly
to greenhouse gas emissions [11–13]. The primary challenge in developing HPCs is to minimize energy consumption during their pro-
duction [14]. Incorporating environmentally friendly admixtures such as slag, fly ash, volcanic ash and silica fume in HPCs can serve
as a substitute for cement and offset the higher costs and carbon footprint associated with adding fibres to the mixture [15–18]. One
effective method for reducing the embodied carbon of HPCs is to substitute natural aggregates with recycled ones [19,20]. The most
straightforward way to reduce the environmental impact of FRC is to substitute engineered fibres with natural or recycled ones [21].
In the concrete technology field, there has been significant research interest in the applications of low-carbon agro-based fibres in
plain concrete [22]. Agro-based fibres are sourced from plants, which absorb carbon from the atmosphere and are readily available in
large quantities every year. Using agro-based fibres in concrete offers several advantages, including sustainability, recyclability, ab-
sence of pollution, and lower cost per unit quantity. Furthermore, incorporating these fibres can significantly enhance the mechanical
properties of concrete [23–25]. Plant-based fibres share a common composition consisting of cellulose, lignin, and hemicellulose.
Various types of plant-based fibres, including coconut husk [20], sisal [26], jute [27], banana [28], bamboo [22], kenaf [29], flax
[30,31] and hemp fibres [32], have been studied as potential reinforcement materials in HPC. Due to their relatively low tensile
strength compared to engineered fibres, plant fibres cannot replace steel fibres in concrete reinforcement. However, their properties
and role in concrete can be similar to those of lightweight synthetic polymer fibres like PPF [28]. According to Ren et al. [26], the ad-
dition of sisal fibres improves both the tensile and compressive properties of UHPC (ultra-high performance concrete). Agro-based fi-
bres have also been shown to effectively mitigate the degradation of concrete strength caused by exposure to fire [26,33]. Agro-based
fibres can serve a similar function to PPF in terms of crack control during the shrinkage stage [34,35] and fire resistance [36]. Agro-
fibres offer an additional advantage over synthetic fibres in that they can function as internal curing agents for enhancing the strength
of concrete [34,35].
Jute fibre (JF) is a readily available, highly durable, and cost-effective plant-based fibre. It is a natural material that provides high
tensile strength, and low fire resistance, and is both renewable and recyclable [37]. Zhang et al. [38] observed a rise in the ratio of
STS to CS of concrete when JF was added to plain concrete. They also analyzed microstructural images that showed the crack-
toughening effects of JF, confirming the ductility enhancement due to the addition of plant fibre. Gulzar et al. [39] discovered that
adding 0.25% and 0.5% vol. of JF had an adverse effect on the CS. However, the negative effects of JF on density and CS were miti-
gated when a plasticizer was introduced in the fresh concrete. Coconut fibre (CF), also known as ‘coir’, is the leftover material ob-
tained from coconut shells. Because of its exceptional tensile strength and toughness, CF is commonly utilized in the production of
various household and engineering items such as ropes, brooms, mattresses, geotextiles, and more [40]. It has been studied as a rein-
forcing material to advance the tensile behaviour of concrete [41]. Ahmad et al. [42] discovered that CF has advantageous impacts on
the flexural behaviour and toughness energy of HPC. In a recent investigation [20], it was observed that the addition of 2% CF (by
weight of cement) can boost the shear capacity of concrete by as much as 60%. Additionally, it was determined that the greatest effec-
tiveness of CF is achieved by employing plasticizers to enhance the workability of fresh concrete. Khan et al. [23] stated that adding
1–2% of CF by wt. of cement can result in significant enhancements in both STS and FS of concrete.
Banana fibre (BF) possesses the highest axial tensile strength, making it the strongest agro-based fibre [43]. It exhibits excellent
properties such as high tensile strength, low density, and nominal resistance to fire. It can be used as a more economical and environ-
mentally friendly substitute for low-density PPF [28]. Studies [28,44,45] have explored the use of BF in various applications such as
reinforcing fibres, rebar reinforcement, and wraps for strengthening and retrofitting cement-based materials and structures. Incorpo-
rating BF into NSC demonstrated evident enhancements in crack toughness under compressive, flexural, and split-tensile loading con-
ditions. Furthermore, the BF-incorporating mixes exhibited significant residual strength even after reaching their maximum load ca-
pacity [28]. According to recent research [28], adding 0.5% volume of BF resulted in a significant increase in the CS, STS, and FS of
normal-strength concrete, with improvements of 6%, 40%, and 10%, respectively.
Although agro-fibres offer advantages in enhancing the STS, shear strength, and FS of concrete, they also contribute to reducing
the overall embodied carbon of the material. Compared to synthetic fibres, the carbon footprint of plant-based fibres is insignificant
[28]. To illustrate, the carbon footprint of processed BF is 0.143 kg-CO2/kg, which is considerably lower than that of synthetic PPF,
which has a footprint of 1.85 kg-CO2/kg [28]. Likewise, treated CF exhibits a remarkably low carbon footprint, which can be as low
as 0.36 kg-CO2/kg [46]. The environmental impact of agro-fibres is primarily influenced by their harvesting, sizing and transporta-
tion to the concrete plant. Since they are naturally produced, agro-fibres have a significantly lower impact on the final carbon foot-
print of concrete when compared to synthetic fibres. According to Haroon et al. [46], CF inclusion in normal-strength concrete can re-
sult in a reduction of approximately 25% in carbon emissions associated with flexural-tensile strength. This indicates that the utiliza-
tion of plant fibres in HPC has significant engineering, economic, and environmental benefits. Agro-fibres have a porous structure and
good hydrophilicity that helps to enhance concrete hydration by releasing internal moisture, thereby compensating for concrete
shrinkage [47]. Agro-based fibres have a distinctive characteristic of acting as a storage inside the concrete to promote later hydration
and refine the pore network of concrete, which in turn improves the fibre-matrix bond [48]. Furthermore, agro-fibres can enhance
concrete's crack resistance, and the random placement of chopped fibres can significantly reduce mass concrete cracking by effec-
tively restraining the deformation of the matrix by the agro-fibres [49].

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Based on a comprehensive analysis of existing research [28,50,51], it has been established that incorporating agro-fibres like CF,
BF, and JF into concrete has yielded encouraging outcomes in improving its tensile characteristics. Further research is required to fill
in certain knowledge gaps and obtain a more comprehensive understanding of the effectiveness of these environmentally friendly
agro-fibres in the engineering performance of HPC. The current data regarding the identification of the ideal dosage of agro-fibres is
insufficient or underdeveloped. Flexural behaviour (load-deflection) of HPC with different dosages and types of agro-fibres has never
been studied before [50]. Besides that, the role of CF, BF and JF in controlling the drying shrinkage of HPC has not been reported. The
review studies [50,51] have revealed that there is limited available information on the durability characteristics (e.g., RCIP, shrink-
age characteristics) of concrete systems reinforced with agro-fibres. This study aims to achieve a significant milestone in the existing
literature by conducting an extensive experimental analysis on the flexural, shrinkage, and absorption properties of HPC reinforced
with three promising agro-fibres (BF, JF, and CF) at various dosages (0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3% vol.). A comparison was made between the
performance of agro-fibre-reinforced HPCs (incorporating JF, BF, and CF) and HPCs reinforced with PPF. The experimental findings
can be valuable for the practical implementation of agro-fibres in structural applications involving HPC, and high-strength concretes.
The research performed on the comparison between the properties of HPC with agro-fibres (BF, JF, and CF) and synthetic PPF has
significant implications for the construction sector e.g., 1) Sustainability: the effective use of agro-fibres can significantly control the
carbon footprint of HPC, since these fibres are renewable and local, reducing the transportation impact on the footprint of fibres; 2)
Cost-efficiency: synthetic PPF is commonly used to enhance the ductility and durability of HPC, however, it is an expensive fibre and
the use of agro-originated fibres can be an economical substitute in developing countries where materials’ cost is a crucial factor: 3)
Waste reduction: Utilization of agro-fibres as reinforcement material, can also contribute to the waste minimization by using the agri-
cultural wastes, which would otherwise be disposed of. This approach can provide a solution to waste management issues in the agri-
culture industry.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Constituent materials
For binding materials, all-purpose Portland cement (OPC) and silica fume were used as primary and supplementary binders, re-
spectively. OPC has ASTM 53 grade and follows the specifications as per ASTM C150 [52]. The OPC follows the composition as given
in Table 1. The values of density and surface area of OPC particles were 3.12-g/cm3 and 354-m2/kg, respectively. Silica fume, also
known as micro-silica, has a particle size range between 0.05 and 1 μm and its silica content is 98%. The SEM image of silica fume is
given in Fig. 1. The density of silica fume is 2.33-g/cm3, whereas the surface area of its particles has a value of around 26,500-m2/kg.
The gradation of OPC and silica fume particles are illustrated in Fig. 2.
Siliceous sand as fine aggregate (0.075-to-4.75-mm) and crushed dolomitic sandstone (2.36-to-4.75-mm) as coarse aggregates
were used for mix preparation. Siliceous sand had a dry compacted density of 1.64 g/cm3. Whereas coarse aggregate yielded a parti-
cle density of 2.67 g/cm3. The gradation charts for both fine and coarse aggregates are illustrated in Fig. 3. As a water-reducing agent,
a polycarboxylate-based plasticizer was employed.
Earlier research [25,27,53] has shown that natural fibres perform best when their length ranges between 20 and 30 mm. There-
fore, for all kinds of plant fibres, their length was maintained at 25–30 mm to ensure optimal performance. The JF (short for jute fi-

Table 1
Oxide percentage in OPC sample (%.by wt.).

SiO2 CaO Al2O3 MgO Na2O SO3 Fe2O3

17.47 65.13 4.58 2.14 0.16 3.67 3.63

Fig.1. SEM image of silica fume particles at the resolution of 1 μm.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig.2. Distribution of particles in OPC and silica fume.

Fig. 3. Size gradation charts for aggregates.

bre) was obtained by taking out fibres from the jute sacks that had reached their expiration date. It was observed that the diameter of
individual JF filaments was approximately 0.1 mm. The apparent density of JF is 1.44 g per cubic centimetre, and its tensile strength
is 410 MPa (MPa). To obtain BF (short for banana fibre), fibre-extractor machines were utilized to convert banana stems into fibre
threads. The diameter of BF varies and ranges between 0.14 and 0.2 mm. The density of BF filaments is 0.910 g per cubic centimetre,
and their tensile strength is 550 MPa. On the other hand, CF (short for coconut fibre) filaments were obtained by separating them
from discarded coconut shells. CF (coconut fibre) filaments were found to have a diameter ranging from 0.15 to 0.6 mm. Additionally,
the tensile strength of CF filaments was measured to be around 120 MPa [20]. The performance of agro-fibres in HPC was evaluated
and compared to that of polypropylene fibre (PPF). The length and diameter of PPF were measured to be 12 mm and 0.03 mm, re-
spectively. PPF demonstrated tensile strength and modulus of elasticity values of 500 MPa and 5 GPa (GPa), respectively. Fig. 4 pro-
vides an overview of agro-based fibres.

2.2. Sample preparation

The plain high-performance concrete (PC) or control HPC was produced using a water-to-binder ratio (w/b) of 0.32, and the mix
proportions are detailed in Table 2. The PC mix design is decided based on trials to achieve fresh concrete slump of 150–230 mm, and
cube compressive strength of 55±5 MPa at 28 days, which qualifies the characteristics of highly workable and high-strength HPC
[54]. To prepare a total of twelve fibre-reinforced mixes (Sr. 2 to 13), three varying dosages of each fibre type (PF, JF, BF, and CF)
were used, which were 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% by volume fraction of HPC. PPF, JF, BF, and CF in the mixture nomenclature refer to
polypropylene fibre, jute fibre, banana fibre, and coconut fibre, respectively. On the other hand, the numbers 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3 indi-
cate the volume % of fibres used in the respective fibre-reinforced HPC mix. In this study, the maximum dosage of all fibres was con-
sidered as 0.3%. The higher dosages (>0.3% by vol.) of agro/plant fibres were not considered which are known to aggravate the me-

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig. 4. This study involved the use of three different types of plant fibres, namely: a) JF (jute fibre); b) BF (banana fibre); and c) CF (coconut fibre).

Table 2
The composition of each HPC mix used in the study.

Sr. Mix Fibre Fibre Cement Silica fume Fine aggregate Coarse aggregate Water SP Fibre Slump
No. Name type Vol. % (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (kg/m3) (cm)

1 PC/Ref. No 0 495 45 638 1071 172.8 3 0.00 21.5

fibre
2 PPF/0.1 PPF 0.1 x x 637 1070 x x 0.91 19.8
3 PPF/0.2 0.2 x x 635 1068 x x 1.82 19.1
4 PPF/0.3 0.3 x x 634 1067 x x 2.73 17.4
5 JF/0.1 JF 0.1 x x 637 1070 x x 1.41 20.8
6 JF/0.2 0.2 x x 635 1068 x x 2.82 20.0
7 JF/0.3 0.3 x x 634 1067 x x 4.23 17.9
8 BF/0.1 BF 0.1 x x 637 1070 x x 0.95 21.1
9 BF/0.2 0.2 x x 635 1068 x x 1.90 20.5
10 BF/0.3 0.3 x x 634 1067 x x 2.85 18.7
11 CF/0.1 CF 0.1 x x 637 1070 x x 1.12 20.9
12 CF/0.2 0.2 x x 635 1068 x x 2.24 20.5
13 CF/0.3 0.3 x x 634 1067 x x 3.36 19.2

chanical performance of concrete [27,42]. At fibre volume higher than 0.3–0.4% also plant-based fibres increase the pore connectiv-
ity of concrete [20]. Thus, fibre dosages were considered as 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% by vol. of concrete. To prevent the absorption of
water by the fibres in the fresh concrete mix, all agro-fibres were incorporated in a pre-saturated state. Additionally, a water-reducing
agent, known as superplasticizer (SP), was utilized in the concrete mix at a dosage of 0.55% by weight of the cementitious material.
The use of SP is inevitable to attain highly workable HPC at a low w/b ratio. The target slump in this research for all mixes was kept in
the range of 150–230 mm. High-workability HPC, with a slump value ranging from 150 to 230 mm, can be pumped at a fast rate over
long distances, and easily be compacted in congested steel sections [54].
Fig. 5 depicts the mixing procedure used for the preparation of HPC. The mixing procedure for the preparation of HPC involved
three phases. In the first phase, the binding materials and aggregates were mixed without the addition of any water in a laboratory-
grade tilting mixer for 4 min. In the second phase, the required amount of water and superplasticizer (SP) was added in two stages
to the dry mix, and the mixing process continued for 4 min. In the third phase, the required amount of fibre was gradually added to
the fresh concrete mix, and mixing continued for another 4 min. Finally, the freshly mixed batches were subjected to a slump test as
per the ASTM C143 [55]. Freshly mixed concrete mix containing 0.3% vol. of JF is shown in Fig. 6. All the HPC mixes were placed
and compacted into steel moulds of different shapes, including cubes, cylinders, and prisms, using a vibrating table. All the fibre-
reinforced concrete mixes were subjected to a uniform vibration process, lasting for 30 s. The newly cast specimens were stored in-
doors at room temperature for 24 h. After 24 h, the set specimens were submerged in tap water for curing maintained at a tempera-
ture of 25±3 °C.

Fig. 5. Mixing phases.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig. 6. Freshly mixed fibre-reinforced (0.3% JF: Slump 179 mm).

2.3. Experimental methods

The load-deflection (bending) behaviour of HPC was determined as per ASTM C1609 [56] by conducting a third-point bending
test on 100 mm (b) x 100 mm (h) x 350 mm (l) specimens. FS, flexural toughness/energy absorption capacity and deflection at fail-
ure were evaluated for all studied HPC mixes. The method used to determine CS was ASTM C39 [57], which involved conducting
compression testing on 100 mm cube samples. The STS of HPC mixtures was evaluated by performing a test on cylindrical samples
with dimensions of 100 mm (d) x 200 mm (h) according to ASTM C496 [58].
Prismatic specimens (100 mm × 100 mm x 285 mm) were used to conduct the free shrinkage test, which was carried out follow-
ing the ASTM C157 standard [59]. Following ASTM C157, the shrinkage specimens were cured in lime-saturated water at 23 °C and
kept moist until they reached 28 days of age. The shrinkage of the specimens was measured under laboratory conditions of 23 °C and
50% RH (relative humidity) after being stored in air. The measurements were taken at specific intervals of 28-days, 56-days, 91-days,
180-days, and 365-days. To evaluate the durability of various HSC mixes, the rapid chloride ion permeability (RCIP) capacity was
measured. The RCIP test was conducted on samples that were 100 mm in diameter and 50 mm in height according to ASTM C1202
[60].

3. Results and discussion

3.1. Flexural behaviour
3.1.1. Load-deflection behaviour
The load-deflection curves of HPCs with varying fibre types and contents are illustrated in Fig. 7. The schematic diagram of the
load-deflection curve is shown in Fig. 8. As can be seen in Fig. 7 that when the loading reaches the ultimate or peak load, PC fails
abruptly, showing brittle behaviour. However, fibre-reinforced mixes showed notably ductile behaviour as compared to that of the
PC. The typical load-deflection curve of fibre-reinforced HPC consists of three different stages: elastic stage; deflection-hardening
stage; and deflection-softening stage. An elastic stage consists of a stable micro-cracking stage, where the load deflection varies lin-
early up to the first crack load (Point A). After the first crack, the load increases at a lower rate, as compared to deflection, which indi-
cates the deflection-hardening phase. At this point (point B), peak or ultimate load is reached, micro-cracks and macro-cracks start
converting into the main-macro cracks., and a drop in the loading is noted with the increasing deflection value, which corresponds to
the deflection-softening stage (B to D). At this stage (Point B to D), the macro-cracks rapidly increase with the increasing deflection,
the vertical macro-cracks start progressing from the bottom to the top of the beam and prismatic samples gradually lose their load-
bearing capacity.
The type and content of fibre used have a notable impact on both the upward and downward peaks of load-deflection curves. For
all fibre-reinforced concretes, the slope of the upward branches is comparable until the load at which the first crack occurs. This is be-
cause, the first crack load is dependent on the matrix strength, which is similar for all types of mixes [61]. The increase in fibre con-
tent also increases the lengths of deflection hardening and deflection softening responses. The peak load, peak deflection and post-
peak deflection increase notably with the rise in fibre content. After peak load, fibrous mixes showed a softening response, which is
related to gradually crack opening. In this stage, more and more fibres start pulling out (either by rupture or debonding) of the plain
concrete matrix while failing to resist the crack-opening [26]. With more fibres pulling out of the matrix, the load-deflection curve
start showing a drop. Therefore, for a given fibre type, with the presence of more fibres, it requires more time and loading to cause the
failure of concrete.
In comparison to mixes that contain CF and PPF, the mixes that incorporate BF and JF display relatively longer hardening and soft-
ening branches. This can be attributed to the composite effect of higher tensile strength and bonding areas of both BF and JF. Both JF
and BF exhibited a better flexural response as compared to PPF. This is attributed to the fact that the bonding area of JF and BF in the
binder matrix is larger (owing to their larger diameters and lengths) than that of the synthetic PPF. Furthermore, the effect of PPF on
flexural behaviour is limited to the control of the micro-cracks owing to their shorter lengths and diameters [62]. Whereas the longer

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig. 7. Load deflection curves of HPC mixes reinforced with a) PPF; b) JF; c) BF; and d) CF.

Fig. 8. Load-deflection characteristics of typic fibre-reinforced HPC. (P = load (kN); δ = deflection (mm); Ppeak = peak load; Pcr = initial cracking load corre-
sponding to δcr; Pδ = 0.5 = residual load corresponding to 0.5 mm deflection; Pδ = 1 = residual load corresponding to 1 mm deflection).

BF and JF with mixed diameters (caused by the natural imperfections) may have a useful impact on the various crack ranges (macro
and micro-cracks) before and after the peak load.

3.1.2. Peak flexural strength

Fig. 9 illustrates how varying doses of PPF, and agro-fibres affect the flexural strength (FS) of plain HPC. Incorporating all types of
fibres has proven to be advantageous in enhancing the FS of concrete. The FS was increased linearly when fibre content increased
from 0% to 0.3%. The trend observed in the STS results was comparable to the changes seen in FS when altering the fibre content and
type. Adding 0.3% of PPF resulted in a 15% increase in the FS of HPC. Increasing the content of both JF and BF had a nearly identical
impact on the FS of HPC. Incorporating 0.3% volume of BF and JF separately led to enhancements in the FS of plain HPC, with ap-
proximately 25% and 23.5% improvements, respectively. The inclusion of a 0.3% volume of CF resulted in a 15% increase in the FS

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig. 9. a) Flexural strength (FS) of HPC mixes; b) net change in FS due to the addition of different agro-fibres.

of HPC. Therefore, the effectiveness of CF reinforcement is relatively inferior to that of JF and BF. As previously stated, CF has a
lower tensile strength than other natural fibres. Consequently, CF-reinforced mixes exhibit weak resistance to the bridging action of
fibres across cracks. The better performance of JF and BF compared to PPF may be due to three possible factors. Firstly, the longer
lengths of plant fibres offer an improved grip of the binder matrix over fibres, facilitating efficient stress transfer [53]. Secondly, the
rougher textures and porous surfaces of both JF and BF aid in additional fibre-matrix bonding strength. Lastly, the moisture content
of plant fibres may provide an internal curing effect, leading to the increased strength of HPC [47]. Ren et al. [26] also reported that
at the same volume fraction, more FS improvement was observed with the increase in fibre length. Despite almost comparable tensile
strength, the extensive connection region between the longer BF/JF filaments and the matrix creates a substantial resistance to
pulling forces, thereby enhancing the ability to span cracks. Therefore, BF and JF yielded relatively better FS than PPF.

3.1.3. Flexural toughness

Assessing the ability of concrete structures to withstand seismic, fatigue, impact, and blast loads is crucial, and a key factor in this
evaluation is their toughness or capacity to absorb energy. When considering concrete subjected to flexural loading, the primary para-
meter of concern is its toughness. This characteristic is determined by the area below the load-deflection curve up to a specific deflec-
tion. In this study, two toughness values of HPC were measured 1) from the initial point to the peak load or pre-peak toughness (ΩP);
and 2) from the peak load to the failure point or post-peak toughness (ΩF), respectively. According to ASTM C1609, the toughness is
measured up to the deflection of L/150 = 2 mm. Since, the deflection value, for all mixes, at the failure point was lower than L/150
(2 mm), therefore, the concept of specific deflection was not considered, rather the toughness was measured up to the point of failure.
Fig. 10 shows the impact of agro-fibres and PPF incorporation on the toughness values of concrete.
Since PC has no backup tensile reinforcement after peak load, it fails after the elastic and brittle response and has negligible tough-
ness values as compared to those of the fibre-reinforced mixes. Generally, for a given fibre type, both toughness values significantly
increased with the increase in fibre content. For instance, the incorporation of 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% PPF increased the ΩP values by
68%, 205%, and 253%, respectively. This is because the presence of PPF fibres contributes to the deflection hardening stage between
δcr and δpeak deflection values. The load-carrying capacity of fibres increases with the presence of more fibre content [63]. The en-

Fig. 10. Pre-peak and post-peak toughness of HPC mixes with varying fibre type and content.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

hanced effect of The ΩF values of HPC are also improved significantly with the addition of PPF. For instance, PPF/0.3 mix yielded ΩF
14.7 times higher than that of the PC. After the peak load, the toughness value is entirely dependent on the bond performance and
quantity of fibres. Therefore, ΩF value drastically increases with the increase in fibre volume.
Among plant fibres, JF and BF yielded toughness values comparable to that of the PPF. At 0.3% volume of fibre, JF, and BF in-
creased the ΩP by 250%, and 326%, respectively. Whereas, incorporating 0.3%CF increased the ΩP by 200%. The primary means by
which fibres improve the toughness of HPC is through their ability to bond effectively with the matrix. As the volume and length of
fibers increase, the energy required to de-bond or extract them from the matrix also increases, resulting in enhanced toughness for the
HPC. Both BF and JF have high tensile strength values, therefore, to the toughness values, they contribute similarly to synthetic PPF.
While, CF has tensile strength deficiency as compared to BF and JF, therefore, its incorporation yielded relatively small improvements
in the pre-peak and post-peak toughness. The ΩF of JF/0.3 and BF/0.3 was 16.7 times and 15.8 times higher as compared to that of
the PC. These results confirm the substantial benefits of agro-fibres in the pre-peak and post-peak toughness of the concrete. Both BF
and JF can yield relatively better toughness values as compared to that of the PPF.

3.1.4. Deflection at failure

Deflection at failure (δF) is another measure to ascertain the ductility or flexibility of fibre reinforced HPC. In Fig. 11, it can be
noted that the PC fails after undergoing a deflection value of 0.15 mm. However, the incorporation of fibres increases the extent of de-
flection in HPC samples at the failure stage. At the point of flexural failure, PPF/0.1, PPF/0.2, and PPF/0.3 showed δF values of
0.41 mm, 0.71 mm, and 1.03 mm, respectively. The deflection values above 0.15 mm, are dependent on the crack bridging action of
fibres (also responsible for deflection hardening and softening response). Increasing the fibre content in HPC results in a greater num-
ber of fibres (acting as tensile backup), which helps to prevent the rupture of the fibre reinforced HPC after reaching the peak load.
The increase in fibre contents of both BF and JF also increased the δF values of HPC. JF/0.3 and BF/0.3 demonstrated δF values of ap-
proximately 1.35 mm, which is 0.32 mm higher compared to the use of PPF. The longer and rougher filaments of JF and BF may re-
sult in a more effective stress-transfer mechanism during deflection hardening and softening responses, which is better than the per-
formance exhibited by the smoother and shorter filaments of PPF. Ren et al. [26] showed that longer cellulose fibre filaments result in
greater toughness and more notable strain-softening responses compared to shorter fibres. This is because the energy required to pull
out fibres from the HPC matrix increases with the length of the fibres. As a result of their longer and rougher filaments, JF and BF
demonstrate superior ductile response and provide a warning before failure, as opposed to PPF. Compared to other agro-fibres, CF has
inherent weakness and lower tensile strength. As a result, when reinforced concrete contains CF, it is more prone to rupture at shorter
δF values. However, it's important to mention that CF, despite having a lower tensile strength, provides ductility benefits that are simi-
lar to those of PPF. CF also enhances the toughness and δF values of HPC by utilizing the energy required for surface pull-out, which is
facilitated by the longer and rougher CF filaments.

3.2. Cube compressive strength

The effect of different doses and types of agro-fibres on the CS of HPC is illustrated in Fig. 12. It can be observed that the impact of
adding agro-fibres on the CS was not consistent and varied with the amount of fibre used. For a given type of fibre, the maximum im-
provement in the CS was observed with a 0.2% volume fraction. CS started to decrease when the fibre content exceeded 0.2%. Thus,
0.2% fibre content can be considered an optimum dosage for all fibre types. For PPF mixes, the CS improvement of 7.9% was observed
at 0.2% fibre volume. The existence of reinforcement aids in augmenting the tensile deficiency of the plain HPC matrix. The distribu-
tion and transfer of compressive stresses in concrete improve due to the presence of fibres, which provides a confinement effect on
crack propagation [64]. At high fibre contents, the CS started to decline due to the negative effect of the lower density of PPF on the

Fig. 11. Deflection values (δF) at flexural failure for different HPC mixes.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

Fig. 12. a) Cube compressive strength (CS) of HPC mix; b) net change in CS due to the addition of different agro-fibres.

CS. Furthermore, the use of excessive fibre may also reduce the density and workability of fresh concrete and ultimately reducing the
CS of HPC [26].
The efficiency of JF incorporation in HPC was comparable to that of the PPF and relatively better than that of the BF and CF. 0.2%
volume fraction of JF caused a net CS improvement of 8.6%. According to a study by Islam and Ahmed [27], the incorporation of
0.25% volume of JF resulted in approximately a 10% rise in the CS of NSC. 0.3% volume of JF did not cause a significant reduction in
the CS, unlike the addition of PPF, BF and CF. This can be credited to the higher density of JF filaments as compared to other types of
fibres used in this study. It is reported that JF enhances the capability of concrete against transverse deformation, due to the control of
fibre incorporation over the onset and propagation of cracks [27]. When fibre is present in lower quantities, it can effectively create
strong bonds between the components of concrete and develop sturdy interfacial connections.
Incorporating BF and CF at a volume of 0.2% resulted in an increase in CS of 5.7% and 4.9%, respectively. Earlier research has
demonstrated that incorporating CF [65] and BF [28] at lower volumes only yields slight enhancements (~5%) in the CS of concrete.
BF and CF possess lower densities and porous microstructures in comparison to JF. As a result, the adverse impact of lower densities
decreases the utilization rates of both BF and CF. It is worth noting that, when used in higher volume fractions, the addition of BF and
CF resulted in lower CS values compared to JF. Therefore, incorporating agro-fibre at higher rates leads to an increase in the voids or
pores within the concrete, which significantly decreases the CS of the concrete. Likewise, when thin or micro fibres are added in
higher quantities, the clumping/balling effect of the fibres results in an inadequate dispersion of the composite components, lessening
their effectiveness in enhancing CS [66]. The internal curing and cooling effect of agro-based fibres can also be contributing towards
the strength of concrete. The water absorbed by the cavity structure of agro-fibres can contribute to the hydration of residual cementi-
tious products and prevent any cracking due to drying or heat of hydration by maintaining internal humidity [47].

3.3. Splitting tensile strength

Fig. 13 illustrates the impact of various volume fractions of agro-based fibres and PPF on the STS. The incorporation of all types
of fibres resulted in an improvement in the STS of HPC. The highest STS values for all groups of fibres were noted when the volume
fraction of fibre was 0.3%. A 15% net increase in the STS of HPC was observed on the incorporation of 0.3% PPF. The efficiency of
PPF in the STS of HPC is not as high as that of the JF and BF. The STS improvement due to PPF incorporation can be attributed to
the 3D arrangement or network of fibres to ensure a crack-arresting mechanism. Smaller fibre diameters, shorter lengths and the
smoother surfaces of PPF filaments may lead to weaker bond strength at the fibre-matrix interface. Thus, PPF may provide a lower
crack-arresting efficiency as compared to rougher, longer and relatively thicker agro-fibres. According to Afroughsabet et al. [62],

Fig. 13. a) Splitting tensile strength (STS) of HPC mixes; b) net change in STS due to the addition of different agro-fibres.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

the addition of 0.3% volume of PPF to HPC resulted in a 15–20% increase in STS. Due to thinner and shorter filaments, PPF is effec-
tive in controlling micro-cracks, however, it fails to provide sufficient resistance in restraining macro-cracks.
For a constant fibre content, JF and BF showed more improvement in the STS, as compared to CF and PPF. Compared to mixes that
contained CF and PPF, those that included JF and BF had higher STS values at all fibre contents, The incorporation of JF and BF at a
volume of 0.3% resulted in a respective increase of 24% and 20% in STS. According to previous research [27], the incorporation of
0.5% volume of JF resulted in an STS increase of up to 20%. In Ali et al.'s study [28], the inclusion of a 0.5% volume of BF, along with
a modified plasticizer dosage, led to a 40% increase in the overall STS of plain NSC. The inclusion of JF filaments in concrete resulted
in improved tensile strength and high resistance to the initiation and propagation of tensile cracks, likely due to their higher tensile
strength and density as compared to that of the other fibres. In terms of STS, both BF and JF performed better than CF. In comparison
to BF and JF, CF has a significantly lower tensile strength, with a difference of approximately 4.58 times and 3.41 times, respectively
(refer to Section 2.1). Although the lower tensile strength of coconut filaments resulted in a limited increase in STS with their incorpo-
ration, CF still exhibited better performance than PF. The longer and thicker filaments, as well as the rougher morphology of agro-
fibres, enable more efficient stress transfer at the interface between the plant fibres and the matrix, in comparison to PPF. Studies
[62,67,68] have shown that fibres with non-uniform shapes, such as irregular shapes, demonstrate better behaviour, as they con-
tribute to stronger fibre-matrix interfaces and increased strength when compared to plain synthetic fibres.

3.4. Drying shrinkage

It is a commonly accepted fact that after 28 days, there is minimal autogenous shrinkage, and any additional shrinkage that occurs
is primarily due to self-desiccation. The results of drying shrinkage (DS) are shown in Fig. 14. The results show that fibre incorpora-
tion leads to different effects on the DS of HPC with varying fibres type and content. The incorporation of PPF showed marginal im-
provements in the DS resistance of concrete with the increasing fibre content. The results are in line with the previous findings, that fi-
bres arrest crack propagation caused by the DS strain [15].
As compared to PPF, agro-fibres yielded mixed effects on the DS resistance with varying fibre types and content. HPC reinforced
with 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% volume of JF yielded lower DS as compared to PC. However, it was noted that the maximum DS resistance
was noted with the lower volume of JF, whereas DS started to increase when JF content increased beyond 0.1%. Kawashima and Shah
[69] reported that in unrestrained DS setup, fibre-reinforced mortar absorbs more tensile energy, which shows that cellulose fibres
continue to absorb tensile stresses, preventing the formation of micro-cracks as a result of DS. Incorporating BF and CF at 0.1%
showed marginal improvements in the DS resistance. However, the DS suddenly increased when the CF and BF contents were above

Fig. 14. Drying shrinkage behaviour of HPC with different contents of a) PPF; b) JF; c) BF; and d) CF.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

0.1%. Both BF and CF are lighter and more porous as compared to JF. Therefore, both BF and CF have high water absorption capaci-
ties. The increase in DS at higher volumes of CF and BF can be ascribed to two possible reasons 1) the cavity structure inside CF and
BF is highly porous leading to the quicker desiccation of concrete matrix, especially at high fibre contents; 2) the higher internal hu-
midity leads to a growth in the pozzolanic reactions converting the larger portlandite crystals into the denser and compact calcium sil-
icate hydrate crystals, which can also reduce the length of specimens [70]. Therefore, JF can be considered the best agro-fibre (in
comparison to BF and CF) to gain strengthening benefits as well as reduced risk of DS. While CF and BF at higher fibre contents may
lead to higher DS cracking in the long term.

3.5. Rapid chloride ion permeability (RCIP)

The effect of PPF and agro-fibres at various contents on the RCIP capacity of HPC is illustrated in Fig. 15. RCIP values in the range
of 100–1000 coulombs correspond to low permeability of chloride ions [71]. Whereas, RCIP values ranging from 1000 to 2000
coulombs pertain to moderate permeability of chloride ions. HPCs containing low w/b ratio, and mineral admixtures (i.e., silica fume,
GGBS) indicate RCIP, lower range [71,72]. In this study, plain HPC indicated an RCIP value of around 900 coulombs, which indicates
the control mix has a lower risk of corrosion. The incorporation of fibre-reinforced showed different effects depending on the type and
dosage of fibre reinforcement.
PPF incorporation at 0.1%, 0.2%, and 0.3% showed fluctuations in the RCIP values, however, the resultant RCIP values remained
below 1000 coulombs. A minor reduction in the RCIP was observed at 0.1% volume of fibres. The enhanced ability of concrete to
withstand cracks due to shrinkage or heat generated during hydration can be attributed to the incorporation of fibres in its composi-
tion. The control in cracking of HPC matrix with low fibre volumes can control the permeability of concrete [15]. At 0.3% PPF incor-
poration, the RCIP value increased by a margin of 5%. When the number of fibres in the HPC exceeded 0.1%, the RCIP was found to
increase. This can be attributed to the higher porosity of the HPC matrix, which is caused by an excessive amount of fibre and insuffi-
cient dispersion of fibres.
Among agro-fibres, JF yielded relatively lower RCIP values as compared to those indicated by the BF and CF incorporation. JF in-
corporation effect on the RCIP was similar to the effect of PPF incorporation. JF has a denser micro-structure, and lower absorption
capacity as compared to BF and CF. Furthermore, JF filaments are thin and less vulnerable to shrinking upon desiccation. Whereas, BF
and CF filaments retain high quantities of water, and thicker filaments are susceptible to shrinking upon desiccation. Upon shrinkage,
CF and BF filaments can create paths for the flow of fluids and chloride ions along the fibre-matrix interface. Therefore, the incorpora-
tion of BF and CF yielded a significant increase of 36% and 40%, correspondingly in the RCIP capacities at 0.3% volume fractions.

4. Conclusions
In this study flexural and shrinkage behaviour of HPC was studied with different types of agro or plant-based fibres. Studied para-
meters include load-deflection characteristics, CS, STS, DS strain, and RCIP. The following conclusions are drawn from the experi-
mental results:
• The incorporation of agro-fibres imparts ductile behaviour to plain HPC. The flexural behaviour of agro-fibre reinforced HPCs is
characterized by brief deflection-hardening and prominent deflection-softening responses, emphasising the crack resistance offered
by the agro-fibres under flexural loading. The hardening and softening responses improved with the increase in fibre content for a
given fibre type.
• In terms of comparison, JF and BF yielded better performance than CF and synthetic PPF. BF and JF yielded overall better
performance in terms of pre-peak and post-peak toughness. For constant fibre content, HPCs reinforced with BF or JF
experienced higher deflections before failure as compared to HPCs made with CF or PPF. Thus, BF and JF ensure higher flexural
ductility than PPF.

Fig. 15. RCIP values of HPC mixes with PPF and different agro-fibres.

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T. Alomayri and B. Ali Journal of Building Engineering 73 (2023) 106714

• The incorporation of 0.3% vol. of PPF, JF, BF and CF yield net improvements of 15%, 22.6%, 24.6% and 14.8% in the FS of
HPC, respectively. These results suggest that all agro-fibres yielded FS improvements comparable to or higher than those
observed with synthetic PPF.
• Considering CS results, the optimum dosage of all agro-fibres was 0.2%. For constant fibre content, JF yielded marginally better
performance in CS improvement than that of the PPF and other agro-fibres. Incorporating 0.2% vol. of PPF, JF, BF and CF
correspondingly showed 7.9%, 8.6%, 5.7%, and 4.9% net improvement in the CS of plain HPC.
• The STS results in experienced changes similar to FS results with varying fibre types and content. BF and JF yielded better STS
results than PPF and CF. The incorporation of BF, and JF at 0.3% vol. improved the STS of plain HPC by 24% and 20%,
respectively. Whereas, CF and PPF incorporation at 0.3% vol. resulted in maximum improvements of 17.5% and 15%, respectively.
• Generally, agro-fibres yielded relatively inferior results in terms of DS resistance as compared to those achieved with synthetic
PPF. However, using 0.1% vol. of all agro-fibres helped in controlling the DS. HPC incorporating 0.1–0.3% JF showed lower DS
than that of the PC. The incorporation of CF and BF at vol. of 0.2 and 0.3% showed drastic increases in the DS of concrete. Due to
the absorbent nature and cavity structure of BF, and CF, DS problems may arise due to the desiccation of a large amount of
moisture, in case of high fibre contents.
• When 0.1% volume of any type of agro-fibre was used, the RCIP value of HPC remained within the range of the “low corrosion
risk” category. When the fibre content was increased to 0.3%, the RCIP values of the samples fell within the “medium
permeability” category. For a constant content, agro-fibres generally produced higher RCIP values than PPF, likely due to their
porous characteristics. The mixes containing JF exhibited the lowest RCIP values when compared to BF and CF. On the other hand,
the mixes incorporating CF demonstrated the highest RCIP values among the three.

Declaration of competing interest

Authors have no potential conflict of interest to declare.

Data availability
Data will be made available on request.

Acknowledgement
The authors extend their appreciation to the Deanship for Research & Innovation, Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia for fund-
ing this research work through the project number: IFP22UQU4290255DSR018.

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