Fire-induced spalling in hybrid polyethylene fiber-reinforced engineered cementitious composite panels

Rawat, S; Zhang, L; Zhang, YX

Fire-induced spalling in hybrid polyethylene fiber-reinforced engineered cementitious composite panels

Rawat, S

Zhang, L Zhang, YX

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Publisher:: ELSEVIER SCI LTD
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Engineering Structures, 2025, 338
Issue Date:: 2025-09-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Rawat, S https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1985-7579
dc.contributor.author	Zhang, L
dc.contributor.author	Zhang, YX
dc.date.accessioned	2025-10-09T04:46:18Z
dc.date.available	2025-10-09T04:46:18Z
dc.date.issued	2025-09-01
dc.identifier.citation	Engineering Structures, 2025, 338
dc.identifier.issn	0141-0296
dc.identifier.issn	1873-7323
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/190333
dc.description.abstract	Polyethylene (PE) fibre-reinforced engineered cementitious composites (ECC) offer high ductility and durability, however concerns over fire performance, particularly spalling resistance, continue to limit their adoption. This study evaluates single and hybrid PE fibre-reinforced ECC with high-volume slag and MgO under fire exposure, examining spalling resistance at both material and structural scales. Key test parameters include PE fibre length (9, 12, 18 mm), fibre type (single or hybrid with polypropylene (PP) and basalt fibre), and panel size (300 ×300 mm, 200 ×200 mm, 100 ×100 mm) and thickness (20, 50 mm). A novel 1-directional (1-D) spalling test is also developed and compared with a traditional 3-directional (3-D) furnace test. Material-scale tests showed that replacing 12 mm, 0.75 % PE fibre with basalt improved strength retention at elevated temperatures by approximately 5–7 %, achieving a total retention of 37–40 %. However, large-scale tests revealed poor spalling resistance with this mix as full-thickness spalling occurred in 300 × 300 × 50 mm panels. Spalling resistance improved with longer PE fibres (18 mm) or the addition of PP fibres, with a hybrid mix (12 mm 0.3 % PP, 1.25 % PE, 0.75 % basalt) demonstrating superior performance. Further analysis indicated that fibre melting may not be the primary mechanism for spalling resistance; rather, fibre distribution and bonding with the matrix are critical for forming an effective network for vapour pressure dissipation.
dc.language	English
dc.publisher	ELSEVIER SCI LTD
dc.relation.ispartof	Engineering Structures
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.engstruct.2025.120589
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	0905 Civil Engineering, 0912 Materials Engineering, 0915 Interdisciplinary Engineering
dc.subject.classification	Civil Engineering
dc.subject.classification	4005 Civil engineering
dc.subject.classification	4016 Materials engineering
dc.title	Fire-induced spalling in hybrid polyethylene fiber-reinforced engineered cementitious composite panels
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	338
utslib.for	0905 Civil Engineering
utslib.for	0912 Materials Engineering
utslib.for	0915 Interdisciplinary Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/UTS Groups/Centre for Advanced Manufacturing (CAM)
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2025-10-09T04:46:13Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	338

Abstract:

Polyethylene (PE) fibre-reinforced engineered cementitious composites (ECC) offer high ductility and durability, however concerns over fire performance, particularly spalling resistance, continue to limit their adoption. This study evaluates single and hybrid PE fibre-reinforced ECC with high-volume slag and MgO under fire exposure, examining spalling resistance at both material and structural scales. Key test parameters include PE fibre length (9, 12, 18 mm), fibre type (single or hybrid with polypropylene (PP) and basalt fibre), and panel size (300 ×300 mm, 200 ×200 mm, 100 ×100 mm) and thickness (20, 50 mm). A novel 1-directional (1-D) spalling test is also developed and compared with a traditional 3-directional (3-D) furnace test. Material-scale tests showed that replacing 12 mm, 0.75 % PE fibre with basalt improved strength retention at elevated temperatures by approximately 5–7 %, achieving a total retention of 37–40 %. However, large-scale tests revealed poor spalling resistance with this mix as full-thickness spalling occurred in 300 × 300 × 50 mm panels. Spalling resistance improved with longer PE fibres (18 mm) or the addition of PP fibres, with a hybrid mix (12 mm 0.3 % PP, 1.25 % PE, 0.75 % basalt) demonstrating superior performance. Further analysis indicated that fibre melting may not be the primary mechanism for spalling resistance; rather, fibre distribution and bonding with the matrix are critical for forming an effective network for vapour pressure dissipation.

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