DURABILITY ASSESSMENT OF RUBBERIZED CONCRETE WITH AND WITHOUT STEEL FIBRE REINFORCEMENT

Waste tyres are non-degradable materials that do not decompose easily, posing a significant threat to the environment. To address this issue, waste tyres are incorporated in to the rubberized concrete as a replacement for coarse aggregate. This research investigates the durability of rubberized concrete with and without steel fibres. Using only waste rubber in concrete results in inadequate strength due to the weak bond between the cement matrix and rubber shreds. To improve this bond, a sand coating with resin is applied to the surface of the rubber shreds. Two groups of concrete specimens were prepared: one containing only rubber shreds and the other incorporating both rubber shreds and steel fibres. Rubber shreds were added at proportions of 2.5%, 5%, and 7.5%, while steel fibres were included at ratios of 0.5%, 1% and 1.5%. Concrete specimens, including cubes (100×100×100 mm) and cylinders (150×300 mm), were cast. Durability tests were carried out on these specimens. The results demonstrated that the rubberized concrete containing steel fibres showed significantly improvements in water absorption, acid resistance, rapid chloride penetration and Impact test compared to rubberized concrete without fibres.