Ultra-lightweight low-carbon LC3 cement composites: Uniaxial mechanical behaviour and constitutive models

Abstract

<p>The present study aims to characterize the constitutive models of a novel ultra-lightweight low-carbon LC³ cement composite (ULCC-LC³) under monotonic uniaxial compression and tension tests. The compressive stress<strong>–</strong>strain curves of ULCC-LC³ were obtained based on axial <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/engineering/compressive-test" title="Learn more about compressive tests from ScienceDirect's AI-generated Topic Pages">compressive tests</a>. The curve characteristics were analyzed and the data was fitted with the existing concrete compression constitutive model. Modified axial compression constitutive model for ULCC-LC³ was proposed and verified using the independent test data and related data of ULCC in other literatures. The characteristics of tensile stress<strong>–</strong>strain curves of ULCC-LC³ were also analyzed and studied. Based on existing experimental data, the applicability of the Tetsushi et. al.’s model to this composite was verified. The experimental results show that use of PE fibers can improve the ductility of ULCC-LC³. As compared with normal concrete, ULCC-LC³ exhibits a higher compressive peak strain (over 0.3% for fiber reinforced specimens and over 0.5% for non-fiber reinforced specimens). These findings contribute to the understanding of the mechanical behavior of ULCC-LC³ and provide constitutive models that can be used in numerical simulations and engineering applications to promote the use of this novel ultra-lightweight low-carbon material.</p>