Fibre Orientation Effects on Anchor Resistance Based on an Innovative Test Setup

The remarkable advancements in concrete technology have yielded a plethora of specialized concrete types. Notably, steel fibre reinforcement (SFRC) boasts enhanced versatility, cost-effectiveness, and sustainability while drastically addressing traditional concrete's low tensile strength, cracking, and brittle behaviour. Despite extensive research in recent decades, crucial information is SFRC's resistance to localized tensile loads exerted by anchor bolts and the influence of potential non-homogeneous fibre orientations. This is particularly significant because anchors are often placed at component boundaries, where fibres tend to align parallel to the external surface due to the “formwork effect”. This study leverages an innovative experimental campaign utilizing 64 single bonded anchors embedded in concrete, with layered casting. This attempts to elucidate the influence of controlled unidimensional fibre orientation on the load-bearing capacity and behaviour of anchorages in SFRC, subjected to an axisymmetric stress field around the anchor axis.