The Use of Sisal Fiber for the Reduction of Plastic Shrinkage Cracking in Concrete

Plastic shrinkage cracking is one of the major causes of degradation for concrete components like cement concrete pavements constructed in hot weather, industrial floors, and reinforced concrete walls as a high percentage of the surface area is exposed to drying. This can damage the aesthetics of the concrete member and decrease the durability and serviceability of concrete structures by facilitating the ingress of harmful chemicals and materials. This experimental study investigates the reduction of plastic shrinkage cracks by using locally available sisal fiber. In the study, 25 mm and 40 mm lengths of fiber in a concrete mix of 0%, 0.2%, 0.3%, and 0.4% in volumetric proportion are used in the reduction of plastic shrinkage crack. The cube specimen was casted and cured in a water tank for 28 days. Finally, compressive strength, flexural strength, and plastic shrinkage cracking tests with image analysis were done. According to the results of the study, fibers with 25 mm and 40 mm length at 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.3%, and 0.4% by volume fraction were able to improve the cracks by 56–97.7%, while the compressive strength of concrete improved by 0.8% up to 7.8%, and the flexural strength also improved by 3.4% up to 27% compared to plain concrete.