Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

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Composites Part B
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Utilization of fibers in ultra-high performance concrete: A review

Jihao Gong a, Yuwei Ma a, *, Jiyang Fu a, **, Jie Hu b, Xiaowei Ouyang a, Zuhua Zhang c,
Hao Wang d
a
Research Center for Wind Engineering and Engineering Vibration, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, 510006, China
b
School of Materials Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China
c
Key Laboratory for Green & Advanced Civil Engineering Materials and Application Technology of Hunan Province, College of Civil Engineering, Hunan University,
Changsha, 410082, China
d
Centre for Future Materials, University of Southern Queensland, Toowoomba, QLD, 4350, Australia

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Fibers are essential in reinforcing the mechanical properties of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC),
Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) particularly the tensile and flexural strength. This paper conducts a systematic review on the effect of fibers with
Fibers different textures and geometry on the properties of UHPC from the following aspects: (1) the bond mechanism of
Reinforcing mechanism
steel fibers with the UHPC matrix; (2) the effect of fiber shape, fiber orientation and hybridization of steel fibers
Microstructure
Mechanical properties
on the microstructure, failure mode, mechanical properties, autogenous shrinkage and durability of UHPC; (3)
Autogenous shrinkage the reinforcing mechanism of synthetic fibers (polyvinyl alcohol fibers (PVA), polypropylene fiber (PP), poly­
ethylene fibers (PE)), mineral fibers (basalt fibers, wollastonite fibers) and carbon fibers in UHPC and their effect
on the performance of UHPC; (4) the use of hybrid fibers and their synergetic effect on the mechanical per­
formance and shrinkage of UHPC. Finally, this paper discussed the further research trends of fibers in UHPC.

1. Introduction strength of UHPC (>150 MPa [12,13], approximately 3–16 times higher
compared to normal concrete [14,15]), as well as excellent ductility and
Concrete is one of the most commonly used building materials energy absorption properties. There are several different criteria to
worldwide. Owing to its natural characteristics, concrete has some de­ define UHPC, e.g. American Concrete Institute (ACI) Committee 239
fects such as high brittleness, low tensile strength, poor crack resistance [16], American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) C1856 [12], U.
and strain capacity. To overcome these drawbacks, fibers are incorpo­ S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration
rated into concrete [1–3] to enhance its toughness, such as metallic fi­ (FHWA) [17], Japan Society of Civil Engineers (JSCE) [18]), etc. Most of
bers [4], synthetic fibers [5,6], mineral fibers [7], etc. The use of fibers the definitions suggest that UHPC should have more than 150 MPa in
in concrete can trace back to the early 1960s when Batson first compressive strength and 5 MPa in tensile ductility.
methodically proposed the concept of fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) With these superior mechanical properties, when UHPC is applied in
and introduced the fiber spacing theory [8]. Since then, FRCs have been structures, it is able to reduce 1/2–2/3 of the weight compared to
continuously improved in the recent 60 years (as shown in Fig. 1). With normal concrete while still satisfying the loading requirements [19]. Shi
the increasing demand for high strength and durable concrete, UHPC et al. [9] pointed out that the key parameters for UHPC preparation
was developed in the mid-1990s with the characteristic of high-compact include reducing the porosity, improving the microstructure and
microstructure and excellent mechanical properties [9]. enhancing the homogeneity of fresh pastes. These factors are closely
UHPC is an advanced fiber-reinforced concrete that consists of a high related to the mixture design and raw materials used in UHPC. Extensive
volume of cement, silica fume, fibers, superplasticizer (SP) and other research has been conducted to investigate the influence of raw mate­
supplementary cementitious materials. It is designed by the dense rials and additives on UHPC, such as nano-particle [20,21], silica fume
packing theory of solid materials, and keeping the water content very [22], fly ash [23], rice husk ash [24], limestone powder [25], etc.
low (w/b < 0.2 [11]). These features lead to the high compressive Different models are proposed to guide the mix design for UHPC, e.g.

* Corresponding author.
** Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: yuwei_ma@[Link] (Y. Ma), jyfu@[Link] (J. Fu).

[Link]
Received 30 November 2021; Received in revised form 11 May 2022; Accepted 17 May 2022
Available online 21 May 2022
1359-8368/© 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Linearly Packing Density model (LPDM) [26], Compressive Packing 2. Mechanical properties of different types of fibers
model (CPM) [27], Aim & Goff model [28], etc. The modified Andreasen
and Andersen model (AAM) [25,29–31] is one of the most popular Although tens of different fibers are applied in UHPC, they can be
models to apply for the mix design of UHPC in recent years. generally classified into three types according to their textures: metallic
The incorporation of fibers is essential for UHPC to achieve high fibers (steel fibers), synthetic fibers and mineral fibers. Fig. 3 compares
mechanical properties [32]. Among all the fibers, steel fibers are the the inherent tensile strength and Young’s modulus of different fibers
most used fibers in UHPC in view of their excellent mechanical prop­ used in concrete. The most commonly used fibers in UHPC include steel
erties. Abbas et al. [33] found that UHPC with higher steel fiber content fiber, PE fiber, PVA fiber, PP fiber, carbon fiber and basalt fiber. Steel
exhibited higher peak load and ductile behavior under compressive fibers, with a high Young’s modulus, tensile strength (Fig. 3) and
loading (Fig. 2(a)). Wille et al. reported [34] that the compressive excellent stability under ambient temperature, are regarded as the most
strength of UHPC with 8 vol% fibers can reach up to 292 MPa at the age suitable fibers used in UHPC. Synthetic fibers such as PP fiber, PVA fiber
of 28 days. The flexural strength and deflection at the peak load of UHPC and PE fiber have lower tensile strength compared to steel fibers (Fig. 3).
are also dramatically improved with the use of steel fibers (Fig. 2(b)) The use of them has limited improvement on the compressive and tensile
[35]. Other synthetic fibers, e.g. PVA fibers [36] and PP fibers [37] are strength of UHPC. On the other hand, they are able to improve the fire
also incorporated to improve the fire resistance of UHPC. Some mineral resistance [55] and volume stability [38] of UHPC. Carbon fibers, which
fibers, such as basalt fibers [38,39] and wollastonite fibers [40,41], are have the highest tensile strength and Young’s modulus, can improve the
applied to improve the mechanical properties and ductility of UHPC. In mechanical properties and reduce the autogenous shrinkage of concrete
recent years, carbon fiber is found to significantly improve the me­ with only a small dosage [42,56]. It is reported that with the addition of
chanical properties of UHPC at a low dosage [42,43]. The fiber type [44, 0.3 vol% carbon fibers, the tensile strength of UHPC improved from
45], fiber content [46,47], fiber geometry [33,38,48], fiber orientation 5.87 MPa to 9.09 MPa and the energy absorption capacity improved
[49,50], as well as the matrix-fiber bond properties [21] are all impor­ from 3.82 J to 7.98 J [42].
tant factors affecting the performance of UHPC, including workability
[51], microstructure [52], shrinkage [40,53] and durability [54]. 3. The use of steel fibers in UHPC
This paper systematically reviews the influences of various kinds of
fibers, e.g. steel fibers, synthetic fibers, carbon fibers, mineral fibers and Steel fibers are the most used fibers in UHPC. To ensure the uniform
cellulose fibers, on the key properties of UHPC. The properties of steel dispersion of fibers and obtain satisfactory workability of UHPC, the
fiber that affect the bond properties (fiber to matrix) of UHPC including addition of steel fibers in UHPC is generally controlled below 3 vol%. Yu
the pull-out resistance, the fiber distribution and orientation, and the et al. [29] compared the flowability of UHPC with limestone and quartz
microstructure of the bonding zone are elaborated. Then, the effect of as a replacement. They found that the flowability all linearly decreased
fiber length, fiber shapes, and hybridization of steel fibers on the failure as the steel fiber content increased (Fig. 4(a)). Wu et al. [61] found that
mode, mechanical properties, autogenous shrinkage and the durability the flowability with straight steel fibers was reduced by 21.4% when the
of UHPC are further discussed. Thirdly, the unique characteristics of fiber content increased from 1 vol% to 3 vol% (with a constant super­
other types of fibers, such as synthetic fibers, mineral fibers, carbon fi­ plasticizer content of 0.02%). To compensate for the workability loss, a
bers and their effect on the key properties (e.g. mechanical properties, higher content of superplasticizer is applied. Yoo et al. [62] found that
autogenous shrinkage, fire resistance) of UHPC are presented. Finally, the flowability barely reduced from 235 mm to 210 mm when the
the use of hybrid fibers combinations and the existing problems are straight steel fiber content increased from 1 vol% to 4 vol%. Meanwhile,
introduced. This review aims to provide a better understanding of the the superplasticizer dosage increased from 1.2% to 1.6% (mass ratio of
roles of fibers in UHPC and further improve the reinforcing efficiency of SP to cement). This may be explained by that higher content of steel
hybrid fibers. fibers increased the surface contact between the fibers and matrix,
leading to a higher cohesive force and reduced workability [29,63].
Additionally, the reduction in flowability is more considerable with the
use of fibers with a higher aspect ratio.

Fig. 1. Development of the high performance concrete (HPC), UHPC since 1960 (modified by Ref. [10]).

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 2. Typical stress-strain curves of UHPC with different steel fiber contents at 28-days: (a) compressive stress-strain [33]; (b) flexural stress-strain [35].

Fig. 3. Young’s modulus (a) and tensile strength (b) of different fibers used in UHPC [9,31,38,57–60].

Fig. 4. The effect of steel fiber content and shape on the workability of UHPC: (a) the relative slump flow [29]; (b) the flowability [61].

Previous studies have reported that the flowability of UHPC was also
Table 1
intensely influenced by the fiber shapes [33,40,53]. Four different
Different types of steel fibers and their geometry [65–70].
shapes of steel fibers are generally used in UHPC, as shown in Table 1.
Compared to straight steel fibers, the use of deformed steel fibers further Fiber types Fiber shape Length Diameter
(mm) (μm)
reduces the flowability of UHPC. As shown in Fig. 4(b), the flowability of
UHPC specimen with 3 vol% hooked-end fibers and corrugated fibers Straight 6 0.16
13 0.16
decreased by 10.9% and 21.1%, respectively, compared with that of
12 0.20
straight steel fibers [61]. This may attribute to the reasons as follows: (1) 13 0.20
deformed fibers provides additional mechanical anchorage between the 30 0.30
fiber-matrix bonding area. (2) the friction between hooked-end fiber and Hooked- 13 0.20
aggregates is higher than the other shapes of fibers. (3) compared to end 20 0.25
20 0.35
straight fibers, deformed fiber is easier to bundle with each other [29,
30 0.38
64]. Corrugated 13 0.20
There is a critical value of fiber content, beyond which the flow­ 30 0.30
ability can be significantly reduced. This is because when the fiber Twisted 13 0.20
18 0.30
content exceeds the critical fiber content, the fiber can easily agglom­
30 0.30
erate and form balls [71]. Superplasticizer is generally adopted in UHPC 30 0.50
to improve the workability of UHPC. It is reported that the addition of

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

superplasticizer in UHPC is important [9,72]. As illustrated, the direct

addition of SP and water led to the SP adsorbs on the cement particles
and cannot disperse effectively during the mixing process [9]. There­
fore, some researchers [17,25,33,73–77] selected the stepwise addition
method which enhanced the dispersing effect of superplasticizer in
UHPC, as shown in Fig. 5(a). Fiber distribution is related to the rheology
of UHPC [71]. Meng et al. [78] employed the viscosity modified
admixture (VMA) to increase the yield viscosity of UHPC. The yield
viscosity of UHPC increased from 12 Pa s to 53 Pa s when the VMA
content increased from 0% to 1%. Meanwhile, the fiber dispersion co­
efficient and flexural strength were both increased as the yield viscosity
increased. This indicated that the addition of VMA improved the uni­
formity of fiber dispersion in the matrix. A proper mixing time is also
important for the workability of UHPC with steel fibers. In general, extra
mixing energy and time are essential to have a uniform distribution of
fibers in UHPC. On the other hand, extended mixing time increases the
temperature in UHPC and introduces air bubbles, leading to a decrease Fig. 6. (a) The single-fiber pullout behavior of steel fibers; the schematic of the
in strength [16,79]. The mixing time of UHPC is generally controlled pullout process of (b) straight fibers and (c) hooked-end fibers [89].
between 10 and 20 min according to previous studies (Fig. 5(b)).
fiber in the opposite direction, which leads to more anchorage resistance
3.1. The pull-out resistance of fibers in UHPC matrix [90]. Friction resistance and mechanical anchorage are the two main
mechanisms determining the pullout behavior of hooked-end fibers in
The use of steel fibers is able to bridge the cracks and transfer the this stage. In stage 5, after the hooked end of the fiber was straightened,
stress from the matrix to the fiber, improving the tensile strength. The the pullout load gradually decreased until the fiber was pulled out
improving capacity of steel fibers is mainly determined by the fiber- entirely. Stage 5 is similar to the pullout stage (stage 3) of straight fiber.
matrix bond property, which can be measured by a single fiber pullout The main pullout resistance is the sliding friction.
test [83,84]. Generally, three types of resistance mechanisms are pro­ According to the pullout slip-load curves, the bond strength can be
posed during the fiber pullout process, i.e. chemical adhesion, friction determined by the peak load, which is also related to the diameter and
resistance and mechanical anchorage [85,86]. As shown in Fig. 6(a), the length of the steel fiber. Zhang et al. [92] found that the bond strength of
pullout behavior of straight steel fibers mainly consists of three stages: hooked-end fiber and corrugated fiber in UHPC was 20.6 MPa and 33.3
(1) stage 1: The pullout load starts to develop until the load reaches MPa, respectively, which was about 3.81 times and 6.17 times larger
point (1). In this stage, no relative slip occurs between the fiber and than that of straight fiber. Yoo et al. [93] indicated that the straight fiber
matrix. (2) stage 2: Straight fiber begins to partially debond and the peak has the lowest bond strength (6 MPa). Hooked-end fiber had the highest
pullout load (point 2) is reached. In this stage, the combined effect of (23.5 MPa), followed by twisted fiber (19.9 MPa) and half hooked-end
static friction and chemical adhesion play a dominant role in the resis­ fiber (12.5 MPa). Wille et al. [94] reported the bond strength of
tance. (3) stage 3: The fiber completely debonds, and it begins to slip twisted fibers can reach up to 47 MPa, which is about 5 times larger than
when it conquers the dynamic friction, as shown in Fig. 6(b). The pullout straight fiber.
load decreases with the increasing displacement until the fiber is Fiber embedded angle also affects the bond strength in UHPC. Yoo
entirely separated from the matrix [87,88]. Friction resistance is the et al. [95] compared the bond strength of UHPC with fiber inclination
main resistance during the pull-out stage. angles ranging from 0◦ to 60◦ . They found that hooked-end fibers with
In contrast to straight fiber, the pullout process of hooked-end fiber an embedded angle of 30◦ exhibited the maximum average bond
has five stages as illustrated in Fig. 6(c) [90,91]. It is worth noting that strength (24.42 MPa) than those with the embedded angle of 0◦ (23.48
stages 1 and 2 of hooked-end fiber are similar to that of straight fibers. In MPa), 45◦ (24.31 MPa), 60◦ (21.39 MPa). This is caused by the syner­
stage 3, two fiber hooked ends (PH1, PH2 in Fig. 6(c)) provide the gistic effect of snubbing (increasing bridging force) and matrix spalling
mechanical anchorage when they go through the straight matrix chan­ [96,97], while the fiber slip capacity continuously improved with the
nel, and the pullout load continues to increase until it reaches the increase of embedded angle. The bond strength with inclined angles of
maximum peak load (point 3). After reaching the maximum peak load, 30◦ and 45◦ were very close. Lee et al. [98] found that the bond strength
fibers are partially pulled out from the matrix, corresponding to the with an embedded angle of 45◦ was 12.69 MPa, which was only 0.1 MPa
suddenly dropped load (point 3- point P). In stage 4, a slight increase in higher than that of the 30◦ embedded angle.
the pull-out load can be found. This may be due to the bending of the The bonding strength of fibers in UHPC is also influenced by the

Fig. 5. Preparation procedures and mixing time of UHPC with steel fibers, summarized from the literature [17,24,25,33,53,58,73–77,80–82]: (a) the schematic of
mixing procedures of UHPC; (b) the mixing time of UHPC by two different methods (normal and stepwise solutions adding).

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

curing regimes, as mentioned by Zhang et al. [92]. They found that the Where N is the total quantity of fibers across the area (AP), Vf is the fiber
bond strength of UHPC with straight steel fibers under autoclave curing content, Af is the fiber cross-sectional area, and ηh is the fiber efficiency
(AC: 190–200 ◦ C and pressure of 1.2 MPa) was 14 MPa, which was much factor.
higher than that of standard curing (SC: 22 ◦ C, relative humidity> 95%), Teng et al. [103] defined a parameter Φ(Φ = α⋅ηθ) to consider the
i.e. 5.4 MPa. This may be related to the improved chemical adhesion combined effect of fiber dispersion and orientation. The results showed
between the fiber and matrix when UHPC was cured at higher temper­ that when the value Φ varies from 0.37 to 0.42, the flexural strength and
atures [99]. Fig. 7 shows the microstructure of fiber surface after the toughness of UHPC enhanced from 23.01 MPa to 26.08 MPa, 54.9
pullout test under AC and SC. A smooth fiber surface was observed for J–59.15 J, respectively. They [104] also stated that the bond strength
UHPC under standard curing. On the other hand, for UHPC under increased by 65% when the fiber orientation angle varied from 0◦ to 45◦ .
autoclave curing, residual cement pastes were attached to the fiber This may be attributed to the additional frictional shear resistance
surface, indicating strong chemical bonding adhesion between the fiber provided by the inclined fibers. Zhou et al. [100] evaluated the re­
and matrix. lationships between the flexural strength and fiber orientation by a 3D
orientation analysis method based on the X-ray CT technique. They
3.2. The distribution and orientation of fibers in UHPC found that more fibers were parallel to the longitudinal direction at the
bottom of the mold, while fibers in the upper half of the mold were
Optimization of the fiber orientation and fiber distribution is obliquely upward toward the bottom of the mold [100]. The flexural
conducive to improving the mechanical behavior of UHPC [49,75, strength of UHPC (in Fig. 10) was linearly related to fiber orientation
100–102]. Meng [78] and Teng [103] used the image processing tech­ factor and numbers of fibers at cracks surface (highly related to the fiber
nique to quantitatively calculate the fiber distribution and fiber orien­ distribution).
tation in the matrix. The detailed process is shown in Fig. 8. According to Fiber orientation can be used to estimate the degree of fiber align­
the figure, the fiber dispersion coefficient α can be calculated by Eq. (1). ment along the tensile stress direction [105]. A higher fiber orientation
[ √∑̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅ ] indicates more fibers being oriented corresponding to the tensile di­
1 (xi − x0 ) rection which helps to restrain the growth of the crack, thus, leading to
α = exp − (1)
x0 n higher strength, as shown in Fig. 11 [31,49]. Fiber orientation is influ­
enced by several factors [31,105–108]: (1) flow patterns: the increase of
Where x0 is the average number of steel fibers in the unit, xi is the flow distance can improve the fiber orientation, which improves fiber
measured fiber number per unit, n is the number of units. dispersing along the flow direction. Zhou et al. [109] stated that fibers
Fiber orientation (θ) represents the angle between the fiber axis and tend to flow perpendicular to the radial flow when casting UHPC at the
the normal direction perpendicular to the cutting surface (as shown in center of the panel. (2) rheology of mixtures: low viscosity of mixture
Fig. 9). Where D is the diameter of steel fiber and L is the major axis may cause the fiber segregation in the suspension, while high viscosity
length of the ellipse. The calculation equation of fiber orientation θ is of mixture can reduce the flow velocity of the mixture, which reduces
shown in Eq. (2). The fiber orientation coefficient (ηθ) is introduced to the hydrodynamic stress [105]. Proper rheology of the mixture is
calculate the effect of fiber orientation on the flexural strength of con­ necessary for UHPC. As reported in Ref. [103], for UHPC samples with
crete as presented in Eq. (3). 1%, 2% and 3% steel fibers, the largest fiber orientations were reached
( ) when the plastic viscosities of the mixture were 36, 52 and 66 Pa s,
D
θ = arccos (2) respectively. (3) casting direction: Fig. 12(a) shows a new L-device to
L
control the casting direction of steel fibers in order to improve the fiber
orientation in practice. The fiber orientation coefficient increased from
∫
θmax
0.520 to 0.735 by using the L-device. The flexural strength of UHPC
ηθ = p(θ)cos2 θdθ (3)
samples with orient fibers (casting by L-device) was improved by 64.3%
θmin
than the samples with no-orient fibers [75]. Similarly, Khayat [110]
developed a method to pour the fresh mixture into a mold at an incli­
Where p(θ) is defined as the probability density distribution for the fiber
nation angle of 30◦ (as shown in Fig. 12(b)). The flexural strength of
orientation.
UHPC reached 28.4 MPa when the steel fiber content was 2.0%.
The fiber distribution is calculated based on the number of fibers per
Abrishambaf et al. [111] adopted an external electromagnetic field to
unit area across the cutting surface. By assuming a uniform fiber dis­
control the fiber orientation of steel fibers. The results showed that the
tribution, the number of fibers in a unit area n can be calculated as
fiber orientation coefficient improved from 0.48 to 0.71 by casting with
shown in Eq. (4) [102]:
the electromagnetic field. Nunes et al. [112] found that the electro­
n=
N
=
Vf × ηh
(4) magnetic field promoted fibers dispersing along the principal tensile
Ap Af stress direction. The fiber orientation coefficient increased by approxi­
mately 65% compared to that without using electromagnetic field.

3.3. Microstructure of fibers in UHPC matrix

UHPC generally has a denser microstructure (as shown in Fig. 13)

than normal concrete due to incorporating a large amount of ultra-fine
cementitious materials and the use of low water to binder ratio. The
presence of aggregate modified the microstructure of normal concrete
and leads to the development of the interfacial transition zone (ITZ), i.e.
the region surrounding the aggregate. This is caused by the wall effect
which results in the anhydrous cement attached to the surface of
aggregate [113]. In normal concrete, the ITZ contains CH crystals,
Fig. 7. The surface of the straight steel fibers after pullout under (a) standard C–S–H gels, and AFt, with the width varying from 20 μm to 100 μm
curing regime (22 ◦ C, relative humidity> 95%) and (b) autoclave curing regime [114]. In contrast, the microstructure of UHPC is more complex due to
(190–200 ◦ C and pressure of 1.2 MPa) [92]. the appearance of ITZ between fiber and the matrix. Amounts of the

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 8. The process of converting images for detecting fiber dispersion: (a) RGB images (step 1); (b) Grayscale image (step 2); (c) Binary image (step 3) [101].

high-temperature curing, a denser microstructure of ITZs in UHPC was

observed in Fig. 14(b)).

3.4. Mechanical properties of UHPC

3.4.1. Failure mode

Owing to its high strength, UHPC without fiber reinforcement
generally exhibited a sudden failure under the compression and tension
tests. El-Dieb [121] compared the failure mode of UHPC samples after
the compression tests. As can be found in Fig. 15(a), the specimen with
steel fibers remains intact after failure, while the specimen (without
steel fiber) fails in an extremely fragile failure. Shao et al. [122]

Fig. 9. The schematic of the bonding angle between the fiber and UHPC ma­
trix [103].

anhydrous cement exist in the ITZ between the paste-aggregate bond of

UHPC (as shown in Fig. 13(b)). As illustrated in Fig. 13(c), the ITZ be­
tween fiber-matrix in UHPC is much lower than normal concrete due to
the use of silica fume [113], and its width generally ranges from 4 μm to
50 μm [115–118].
The microstructure of UHPC is also influenced by the curing regimes.
Yazici et al. [120] reported that UHPC with steel fibers under a higher
curing temperature enhanced the degree of cement hydration. This is
consistent with Ref [118]. As can be seen in Fig. 14, the thickness of ITZ Fig. 11. The relationships between fiber orientation and flexural strength of
was 2–4 μm at a curing temperature of 20 ◦ C. After the heat UHPC [31].

Fig. 10. The relationships between flexural strength of UHPC and fiber properties [100]: (a) fiber orientation factor; (b) numbers of fibers at the crack surface.

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 12. Two methods to improve fiber orientation by controlling the casting
direction: (a) A L-shape device [75]; (b) casting at a 30◦ angle [110]. Fig. 14. ITZ between matrix and steel fiber in UHPC under (a) 20 ◦ C curing and
(b) 90 ◦ C curing temperatures [118].
investigated the effect of steel fibers on the failure mode of UHPC
specimens under the tensile test, as shown in Fig. 15(b). It can be found the reference sample without fibers.
that the specimens without steel fibers only present one main crack Some researchers noted that the mechanical properties of UHPC
during the tensile test. For comparison, multiple cracks were present as were not always enhanced with the presence of steel fibers. For instance,
the load increased with the addition of steel fibers. The use of steel fiber Meng et al. [53] found that the compressive strength of UHPC with 4 vol
is able to prevent a sudden failure of specimens [123]. Wille et al. [124] % and 5 vol% steel fiber was 5.06% and 7.6% lower than that of 3 vol%
also reported that the crack spacing of UHPC decreased from 4.6 mm to steel fiber respectively. They [53] also reported that the flexural
3.2 mm when the fiber content increased from 2 vol% to 3 vol% under strength of UHPC decreased when fiber content was above 5%. Yoo et al.
the tension test. Some UHPC specimens exhibited a single crack in the [62] stated that when the addition of steel fiber increased from 3% to
process of the tensile test. This may attribute to the initial crack tensile 4%, the compressive strength of UHPC decreased from 207.3 MPa to
strength being higher than the maximum fiber-bridging strength, lead­ 185.04 MPa. It is pointed that high content fibers are easy to lead to
ing to a reduction in load capacity, thus, the strain-hardening stage and agglomerate which deteriorates the mechanical properties [53]. It is
multiple cracks cannot happen [46]. recommended that the steel fiber content should be controlled below 4
vol%. Pyo et al. [131] found that the tensile strength decreased from
3.4.2. Effects of fiber content 18.43 MPa to 17.67 MPa when the fiber content increased from 1.5% to
In most cases, the increase of fiber content can promote the me­ 2%. However, in their mixture design, they applied coarse aggregate
chanical properties of UHPC. Fig. 16(a) shows the UHPC had higher with a maximum size of 5 mm to fabricate UHPC, which is much larger
compressive strength with the increase of straight steel fiber contents. In than the conventional aggregate. The application of courser aggregate
Ref. [33], the compressive strength of UHPC with 3% steel fiber can may also affect the fiber dispersion in UHPC.
reach 164 MPa, which is 12 MPa higher than that with 1% steel fiber.
Likewise, Wille et al. [125] showed that the addition of 2.5% steel fiber 3.4.3. Effects of fiber shape
enhanced the compressive strength of UHPC by 4.6%, compared to that Various shapes of steel fibers have been investigated in UHPC,
without steel fibers. Moreover, Alsalman et al. [126] stated that the including straight, hooked-end, corrugated and twisted fiber [45,62,
addition of 4% steel fiber improve the elastic modulus of UHPC from 135–139]. Fig. 17 compares the effect of fiber shape on the mechanical
37.6 GPa to 41.0 GPa. It is pointed out that the homogeneously properties of UHPC. It can be found that the use of deformed fibers is
distributed fibers absorb the stress generated at the fibers’ top and conducive to promoting the mechanical properties of UHPC when the
restrict the deterioration of the internal materials and crack growth, thus fiber content is below 3%, particularly on the tensile strength and
enhancing the compressive strength [14]. As shown in Fig. 16(b), the flexural strength (as shown in Fig. 17(b) and (c)). Wu et al. [61] reported
tensile strength of UHPC is enhanced with the increase of fiber contents. that the compressive strength of UHPC with hooked-end fiber and
Hassan et al. [127] reported that the tensile strength with 2 vol% steel corrugated fiber was 14.4% and 6% higher compared to that of straight
fibers increased from 5.36 MPa to 9.07 MPa, compared to that of UHPC fiber when the fiber content was 1%. Another study by Wu et al. [65]
without fibers. Jin et al. [128] observed that the tensile strength of also reported that the flexural strength increased by 11.08% and 4.28%,
UHPC with a dosage of 3% steel fibers can reach about 2.4 times greater respectively, with 2 vol% hooked-end fibers and corrugated fibers
(16.05 MPa) than the samples without steel fiber (6.67 MPa). Similarly, compared to that of straight fibers. The corresponding fiber-matrix
the flexural strength generally increased with higher steel fiber content, bonding strength of hooked-end, corrugated, straight fiber was 19.5
as shown in Fig. 16(c). In accordance with Jin et al. [128], Kazemi et al. MPa, 8.8 MPa, and 3.1 MPa, respectively. Yoo et al. [95] demonstrated
[129] found the flexural strength was 1.07 times larger when the fiber that the tensile strength of UHPC samples with the twisted fiber was 1.2
content increased from 0% to 5%. Abbas et al. [33] produced UHPC with MPa higher than that of straight fibers (17.1 MPa). The flexural strength
6% fiber content, which exhibited flexural strength 4 times larger than with twisted fibers was improved by approximately 40% in contrast to

Fig. 13. Microstructure of (a) paste-aggregate ITZ in normal concrete [119], (b) paste-aggregate ITZ in UHPC [64], (c) fiber-matrix ITZ in UHPC [117].

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 15. Effect of steel fiber on the failure mode of UHPC: (a) under compression [121]; (b) under tension [122].

straight fibers at the same fiber volume fraction [140]. fibers decreased [95]. Notably, Yoo et al. [135] reported that the flex­
Some studies showed different results. For compressive strength, as ural strength with hooked-end and twisted fiber were both lower than
can be found in Fig. 17 (a), UHPC with straight fibers presents the that of straight fibers when the fiber content is higher than 1 vol%. They
highest compressive strength at 28 days compared to hooked-end and explained that high fiber contents lead to fiber concentration, and the
twisted fibers. Liu et al. [132] observed a slight decrease (4 MPa) in splitting cracks are formed in the surrounding matrix which reduces the
compressive strength for hooked-end fiber in comparison with straight pullout capacity of adjacent fibers, indicating a decrease in flexural
fiber. Yoo et al. [45] explained that only limited number of fibers bridge strength.
and delay the propagation of microcracks for hooked-end and twisted
fibers. In their study, straight fiber exhibited the largest fiber numbers 3.4.4. Effects of fiber length and aspect ratio
per unit volume, compared to hooked-end fiber and twisted fibers. In general, the use of steel fiber with a higher aspect ratio or length
Furthermore, the hooked-end fibers can easily entangle with each other. (with constant diameter) is able to improve the tensile and flexural
As a consequence, the distribution of hooked-end fibers was poorer than strength of UHPC. For instance, Yoo et al. [139] compared the effect of
straight fibers, leading to the decrease in compressive strength [135, three different dimensions of straight fibers, including long fibers (Lf/Df
143]. Similarly, they [95] found the use of 2% hooked-end fibers = 19.5/0.20 = 97.5), medium fibers (Lf/Df = 16.3/0.20 = 81.5) and
resulted in a lower tensile strength (from 17.1 MPa to 11.6 MPa), short fibers (Lf/Df = 13/0.20 = 65), on the flexural strength of UHPC.
compared to straight fibers. A relatively weak bonding property was The results showed the long fiber had the highest flexural strength (the
observed which indicates the tensile strength of UHPC with hooked-end fiber content was 1%), which was 0.03% and 32.3% higher than those

Fig. 16. Effect of straight fiber contents on mechanical properties of UHPC: (a) compressive strength; (b) tensile strength; (c) flexural strength [33,46,53,61,62,65,
75,124,126,128,130–135].

Fig. 17. Effect of fiber shapes on mechanical properties of UHPC: (a) compressive strength; (b) tensile strength; (c) flexural strength [45,46,61,65,95,124,128,131,
132,135,141,142].

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

with medium and short fibers, respectively. Kim et al. [140] found that 3.6. Durability
when the fiber aspect ratio increased from 65 to 100, the flexural
strength increased from 20.25 MPa to 22.45 MPa. It is reported that as The durability of UHPC is closely related to its microstructure and
the fiber length increased from 13 mm to 30 mm at the diameter of 0.2 pores, including total porosity and pore size distribution. Fig. 19 shows
mm, the tensile strength increased from 17.1 MPa to 21.5 MPa [95]. that the pore size distribution of UHPC is refined in the range of 0.01
Huang et al. [144] found that the fiber length has limited effect on the μm–0.1 μm, in comparison with the normal concrete (NC), high-
bond strength, but is able to improve the pullout energy of UHPC. performance concrete (HPC), and reactive powder concrete (RPC).
Longer steel fiber has a higher aspect ratio, indicating a higher bonding Teichmann et al. [152] compared the total porosity of NC, HPC and
area between the matrix and fiber, which leads to a higher strength [14, UHPC. The results showed that the total porosity of UHPC at 28 days is
135]. On the other hand, fiber length has no obvious effect on 6.0%, which is much lower than that of NC (15.0%) and HPC (8.3%).
compressive strength for UHPC. For example, Abbas et al. [33] Steel fiber is proven to influence the durability of UHPC including
compared UHPC with different straight fiber lengths (8 mm, 12 mm, 16 chloride ion permeability [33,121], freeze-thaw resistance [153] and
mm). The results showed that the compressive strength with long fiber fire resistance [54,154], as summarized in Table 2.
(16 mm) was only 2 MPa and 4 MPa higher than that of samples with The total charge passed and chloride ion diffusion coefficient are the
medium (12 mm) and short fiber (8 mm), respectively. Yoo et al. [145] typical index to evaluate the chloride penetration ability in concrete. It is
found that no noticeable differences in the compressive strength of reported that the chloride ion penetrability is negligible when the total
UHPC were observed when the fiber length increased from 13 mm charge passed is less than 100 coulombs [17,54]. From Table 2, it can be
(211.8 MPa) to 19.5 mm (209.7 MPa). found that UHPC has excellent ability to resist chloride diffusion. Abbas
et al. [121] reported that a higher steel fiber content increased the total
3.5. Autogenous shrinkage charge passing and chloride ions penetration which indicates good
protection of steel fiber against corrosion. The chloride ion diffusion
The hydration process and microstructure development of UHPC are coefficient of UHPC ranges from 0.2 × 10− 13 to 4.1 × 10− 13 m2/s, which
faster than normal concrete, which means a higher volume change in the is far less than that of normal concrete [54,158,156]. Li et al. [54] also
early age [146]. It is reported that the autogenous shrinkage of OPC compared the chloride ion diffusion coefficient of UHPC and normal
mortar with a w/b ratio of 0.30 was around 630 με at the age of 24 h concrete. They reported that the chloride ion diffusion coefficient of
[147], while the autogenous shrinkage of UHPC at 24 h was about 1200 UHPC is 0.2 × 10− 13 m2/s, which is one-fifth of that of normal concrete.
με [65]. The high cement content stimulates degree of the hydration, The dense microstructure and low permeability lead to UHPC being
and the internal relative humidity decreases. In order to balance the extremely to resist freeze-thaw. As can be found in Table 2, the relative
concave surface, the capillary pressure increases which results in dynamic modulus (RDM) of UHPC can keep above 100% under different
autogenous shrinkage [148]. Meanwhile, high packing density de­ freeze-thaw cycles. Moreover, the mass loss of UHPC is controlled by a
creases pore sizes in the matrix and increases capillary pressure [149]. slight decrease (no more than 1%).
Hence, the autogenous shrinkage of UHPC increases noticeably. The temperature has little effect on the strength of concrete below
The use of steel fibers in UHPC is able to effectively decrease the 400 ◦ C and even has a certain degree of improvement, but the strength
autogenous shrinkage. Owing to its high elastic modulus, steel fiber can decreases greatly between 800 and 1000 ◦ C [161]. It is generally
serve as the skeleton in the process of shrinkage of concrete [148]. regarded that though UHPC performs high mechanical properties, it is
Furthermore, the bond strength of fiber-matrix also restrains the more susceptible to explosive spalling than NC, HPC when exposed to
development of microcracks. Meng et al. [53] reported that the autog­ high temperatures [160,162]. This is related to the dense microstructure
enous shrinkage of UHPC was reduced by 15% and 60% when the steel and low permeability of UHPC, which leads to the thermal vapor pres­
fiber content increased from 1% to 5%. Compared to UHPC without sure being hard to escape [163]. Nevertheless, Liu et al. [164] found that
fiber, the use of 2.5% steel fiber reduced the 14-day autogenous UHPC specimens exhibited excellent stability on the compressive
shrinkage by 39.1% [150]. Fig. 18(a) shows that the increase of fiber strength after suffering heat exposure, compared to NC, HPC. The re­
content can restrain the autogenous shrinkage of UHPC from 1300 με to sidual compressive strength of NC, HPC, UHPC maintained the initial
around 600 με. In addition, the use of straight steel fibers reduced the strength of 52.7%, 34.6%, 55.6% after the duration of 120 min at a
autogenous shrinkage up to 53% in the first 17 h. The autogenous constant temperature of 500 ◦ C. It was also reported that the tempera­
shrinkage of UHPC is also affected by fiber shape, as well as fiber aspect ture of the central and external UHPC matrix was very close which
ratio. Fig. 18(b) shows that the autogenous shrinkage of UHPC speci­ contributed to a lower internal thermal stress. One of the mechanisms
mens with the corrugated fibers and hooked-end fibers was 14% and that explained the spalling of concrete is the thermal expansion and
25% lower than that with straight fibers, respectively. Fang et al. [151] stress. The rapid rate of temperature change and thermal stress results in
reported that UHPC with the highest fiber aspect ratio (Lf/Df = 60
mm/0.75 mm) had the minimum autogenous shrinkage (about 327.78
με), while UHPC with a medium fiber aspect ratio (Lf/Df = 36 mm/0.55
mm) and a small fiber aspect ratio (Lf/Df = 35 mm/0.75 mm) was
higher, i.e. 411.11 με and 483.33 με, respectively.

Fig. 18. Autogenous shrinkage of UHPC with (a) different straight fiber con­ Fig. 19. The pore size distribution of normal concrete (NC), HPC, UHPC and
tents and (b) different fiber shapes [65]. RPC [152].

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Table 2
Durability of UHPC with the addition of steel fibers.
Durability Ref Steel fiber content (%) Water/binder Testing producers Properties

Chloride penetration resistance [33] 0.0 0.23 Testing time (h) Total charge passed (coulombs)
1.0 6 71
3.0 60
6.0 45
36
[155] 1.5 0.22 Testing time (h) Total charge passed (coulombs)
6 57
[156] 2.0 0.22 – Chloride ion diffusion coefficient
0.89 × 10− 13
Freeze thaw resistance [155] 1.5 0.22 Total mass loss RDM
60 cycles - 42.20% 60 cycles - 100%
[157] 2.0 0.22 Total mass loss RDM
96 cycles - 0.37% 96 cycles - 100%
[17] 2.0 – Total mass loss RDM
125 cycles - 0.20% 125 cycles - 108%
[158] 2.0 0.15 Total mass loss RDM
300 cycles - 0.19% 300 cycles - 110.45%
Fire resistance [159] 2.0 0.16 Mass Loss 20 ◦ C- Fc = 187.5 MPa
200 ◦ C - 0.23% 200 ◦ C- Fc = 204.8 MPa
[160] 2.0 0.145 300 ◦ C Fc(t = 300 min)/Fc(t = 0 min) = 1.22
60 min Ft(t = 300 min)/Ft(t = 0 min) = 0.90

Note: RDM stands for the value of resonant frequency after freeze cycles to the initial resonant frequency. Fc stands for compressive strength. Ft stands for tensile
strength.

compressive failure [165]. Moreover, the mass loss of the UHPC matrix fiber (with a corrosion degree of 4%) improved the tensile strength of
was also lower than NC, HPC under the same testing condition. Thus, the UHPC, by which the surface roughness of steel fiber increased. They
UHPC samples performed a higher residual strength. Li [154]and Liang [169] also evaluated the pullout resistance of UHPC with pre-loaded
[159] reported that steel fiber had a positive effect on reducing the samples (residual slips) in the permeation of 3.5% NaCl solutions.
degree of explosive spalling of UHPC. When the UHPC samples incor­ Under a permeation duration for 4 weeks, the average bond strength and
porated 2 vol% steel fibers, the property of preventing explosive spalling pullout energy of samples (0.15 mm residual slips) increased by 58%
was noticeably improved and the weight loss was reduced by about 15% and 70%, respectively. Nevertheless, Pyo et al. [170] stated that the
after spalling test. Fig. 20 shows the mechanical properties of UHPC with flexural strength of UHPC panels with a thickness of 10 mm was reduced
different steel fiber contents after 350 ◦ C exposure. UHPC with a higher by fiber corrosion, while no obvious reduction in flexural strength was
fiber content exhibited higher compressive strength after 350 ◦ C expo­ found for the panels with the thickness of 25 mm and 50 mm. Fan et al.
sure for 50 min, while the flexural strength decreased with the exposure [171] investigated the effect of brass-coated and zinc-coated steel fibers
time. For example, the compressive strength of UHPC increases from on the corrosion resistance of UHPC with steel rebars embedded. The
194.63 MPa to 216.24 MPa when the fiber content increases from 2% to results showed that no chloride was detected when the corrosion current
8% when the specimens are exposed to 350 ◦ C for 300 min. However, density was approximately 0.01 μA/cm2, revealing no corrosion
the flexural strength decreases from 30.45 MPa to 16.79 MPa in the happened on the steel bars. They [172] also pointed out that the addi­
same situation. tion of steel fiber content in UHPC should be no higher than 3% in order
Owing to the very dense microstructure, UHPC exhibited better fiber to guarantee the corrosion resistance of steel rebar.
corrosion resistance than that of HPC and NC [166,167]. It is reported
that the development of steel fiber corrosion in the UHPC matrix is very
3.7. Hybridization of steel fibers with different geometry
slow. Only the exposed steel fibers are corroded [168]. In Ref. [166], the
tensile strength slightly decreased and only a few steel fibers were
Compared with single-type fiber, hybridization of steel fibers with a
corroded on the surface of samples under immersion in 3.5% NaCl so­
different geometry is able to improve the effectiveness of fibers in UHPC
lutions for 20 weeks. Yoo et al. [168] reported that the corrosion of steel
[58,140]. The hybridization generally consists of two parts: a) the

Fig. 20. Evolution of mechanical properties of UHPC with different steel fiber contents under 350 ◦ C exposure duration [160]: (a) the compressive strength and (b)
the flexural strength.

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

straight fibers and short fibers improved the flowability of UHPC [68,
173]. From Table 3, the flowability of UHPC with hybrid fibers (long
straight fiber and short straight fiber) in Ref. [68] and Ref. [173]
increased by 6.66% and 6.19%, respectively. This can be attributed to
short steel fiber restricting the rotation of long steel fiber and improving
the "wall effect" of long steel fiber [173].

Fig. 21. Hybridization of (a) steel fibers with different shapes; (b) steel fibers 4. The use of other types of fibers in UHPC
with different lengths [173].
Although steel fibers are the most commonly used fibers in UHPC,
the incorporation of steel fibers in UHPC has some disadvantages such as
[31,166] (1) potential to corrode, (2) high density (add constant load),
(3) high cost. In view of these disadvantages, other fibers have been
extensively applied to UHPC. Table 4 shows the physical characteristics
of these fibers and their effect on the different properties of UHPC.

4.1. Synthetic fibers

As mentioned in Section 2, synthetic fibers, including PP fiber, PE

fiber, and PVA fiber, have a lower elastic modulus than steel fibers.
However, synthetic fibers have been proven to enhance the ductility of
concrete considerably. It is known that PE fiber and PP fiber are hy­
drophobic [38], while the PVA fiber is hydrophilic. PE fiber and PP fiber
can restrict water from entering the inner space of the concrete matrix,
while they also draw more air bubbles attaching to the surface of fibers,
leading to a porous ITZ. Additionally, a higher fiber content or fiber
length may lead to fiber agglomeration and cause local softening and
become a weak area.
Fig. 22. The schematic diagram of fiber bridging effect by hybridization of
Fig. 23 shows the fiber-matrix interfacial zone between PE fiber and
fibers with different lengths [174].
steel fiber. No obvious weak zone can be found in the ITZ for both two
types of fibers. Nevertheless, the pullout mechanism of synthetic fibers is
combination of fibers with different shapes (as shown in Fig. 21(a)); b)
not the same as steel fibers. For instance, PVA fibers, with high chemical
the combination of fibers with different lengths (as shown in Fig. 21(b)).
adhesion, were more seriously fractured within the UHPC matrix due to
The schematic diagram of using hybrid macro fiber and microfiber is
the surrounding matrix being strong enough to fracture the synthetic
presented in Fig. 22. Wu et al. [68] explained the fiber bridging effect by
fiber, restraining the increase of strain capacity and multiple cracking
hybridization of fibers with different lengths and divided it into three
behaviors [187]. Moreover, due to the high aspect ratio, synthetic fibers
types: (1) No fiber actions. Micro-cracks occurred in this step initially
disperse poorly and result in reducing workability [188]. Hence, the
and the weak zones of concrete were developed. (2) The action of short
mechanical properties of UHPC with the addition of synthetic fibers are
fibers. Micro-cracks propagated continuously and the short fiber bridged
deteriorated compared to that of steel fibers. For example, Fig. 24 shows
the cracks which help to restrict the microcracks developed. (3) The
the compressive strength of samples with six different types of fibers. It
action of long fibers. Marco-cracks formed eventually and long fibers
can be founded that the compressive strength and elastic modulus of
covered the macro-cracks and bridged the macro-cracks. Controlling the
UHPC samples with PP-PE fiber decrease from 173.2 MPa to 124.7 MPa
micro-crack and macro-crack results in higher strength and substantial
and 51.8 GPa–44.8 GPa, respectively.
improvement in the fracture toughness of concrete, respectively.
Fig. 25 compares the mechanical properties of UHPC with basalt fi­
Table 3 lists the effect of hybridization of steel fibers with different
bers, glass fibers and PP fibers. Glass fibers and PP fibers showed higher
lengths and shapes on the mechanical properties of UHPC. The results
compressive strength than basalt fibers. It is noted that the compressive
reveal that the combining of deformed fibers and straight fibers helps to
strength reaches its maximum value when the fiber content is 0.5% for
develop the mechanical properties of UHPC, especially on the tensile
all the types of fibers. However, the flexural strength of UHPC contin­
and flexural strength. For example, Yoo et al. [45] reported that the use
ually increased with the addition of synthetic fibers as shown in Fig. 25
of hybrid steel fibers (1.5 vol% hooked-end fiber and 0.5 vol% straight
(b). This may be explained by that PP fibers decrease the fiber-matrix
fiber) provided a 6% enhancement in compressive strength, in com­
chemical adhesion due to their hydrophobic nature and significantly
parison with the 2 vol% hooked-end fiber. Wu et al. [67,68] reported
enhance the fiber bridging effect [59].
that the compressive strength of UHPC with 1.5 vol% long steel fiber
In order to compensate the negative effect of synthetic fibers on the
(Lf/Df = 13 mm/0.2 mm) and 0.5 vol% short steel fiber (Lf/Df = 6
mechanical properties of UHPC, He et al. [178] attempted to cover
mm/0.2 mm) was 18.99% higher than that of 2 vol% long steel fiber.
carbon nanofibers (CNFs) on the surface of PE fibers. After the fiber
Meanwhile, the flexural strength increased from 20.89 MPa to 32.05
treatment, the tensile strength and bond strength increased by 15% and
MPa. This is because microfiber reinforced the fiber-matrix bonding
22%, respectively. Zhou et al. [177] employed nano-silica particles to
properties and enhanced the pull-out resistance of macro fibers [174,
modify PVA fibers by using a sol-gel method, as shown in Fig. 26. The
175]. However, Chun et al. [176] reported that the tensile strength of
compressive strength and flexural strength were improved from 21.18
UHPC is reduced when using long straight steel fibers and short straight
MPa to 27 MPa and 158.99 MPa–175.32 MPa, respectively. They
steel fibers. They described it as the decreasing numbers of fibers around
explained that the surface roughness of PVA fiber increased by the fiber
the crack surfaces, which was determined by fiber length and fiber
treatment, leading to increased physical friction and interlocking effect
aspect ratio. Yoo et al. [45] also found that the hybridization of 0.5%
on the fiber-matrix area. Moreover, the nano-silica particles can further
twisted fiber and 1.5% straight fiber had a lower flexural strength (39.5
react with C–S–H gel in the matrix, generating new hydration products
MPa) compared to that of 2 vol% twisted fiber (42.7 MPa).
and filling in the cracks.
Apart from mechanical properties, the combination of using long
The use of synthetic fibers causes poor fiber dispersion and

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Table 3
Effect of hybrid steel fibers on the mechanical properties of UHPC.
Ref. Part A Part B Properties (effectiveness-%)

Name Fiber Fiber Fiber Name Fiber Fiber Fiber

length diameter content length diameter content

(mm) (mm) (%) (mm) (mm) (%)

[140] Short- 13 0.2 1 Straight- 1.0 Flexural strength Toughness Deflection

straight long (MPa) (kN⋅m) (mm)
30 0.300 37.51 (+1.08%) 165.81 1.640
(+64.78%) (+60.49%)
Hooked- 30 0.375 38.26 149.56 1.460
end （+3.10%) (+48.66%) (+43.14%)
Twisted 30 0.300 41.20 156.36 1.480
（+11.02%) (+55.39%) (+45.39%)
[45] Long- 19.5 0.2 0.5–1.5 Hooked- 0.5–1.5 Compressive Flexural Deflection
straight end strength (MPa) strength (MPa) (mm)
30 0.380 199.00 (+6.02%) 45.40 1.370
(+31.98%) (+31.73%)
Twisted 30 0.300 202.20 (+0.75%) 44.90 (+5.15%) 1.290
(− 3.01%)
[176] Micro- 13 0.2 0–2.0 Pullout load (N) Tensile strength Stain capacity
fiber (MPa)
Straight 30 0.300 0–2.0 603.22 14.56 0.630
(+167.93%) (− 15.74%) (− 22.04%)
Hooked- 30 0.375 1133.91 (+9.7%) 17.02 0.747
end (+38.94%) (+0.81%)
Twisted 30 0.300 674.73 (+57.19%) 17.68 (+13.7%) 0.069
(− 12.66%)
[142] Straight 13 0.2 0–2.5 Hooked- 13 0.200 0–2.5 Compressive Flexural strength (MPa)
end strength (MPa)
224.18 (+22.85%) 48.66 (+0.14%)
[67] Long- 13 0.2 0–1.5 Short- 6 0.200 0–1.5 Compressive Elastic modulus (GPa)
straight straight strength (MPa)
109.40 (+4.93%) 40.9 (+9.07%)
[68] Long 13 0.2 0–1.5 Short- 6 0.200 0–1.5 Compressive Flexural Flowability
-Straight straight strength (MPa) strength (MPa) (mm)
143.70 (+18.99%) 32.05 243.07
(+53.42%) (+6.66%)
[173] Long- 13 0.2 0–2 Short- 6 0.16 0–2 Compressive Flexural Flowability
Straight straight strength (MPa) strength (MPa) (mm)
141.53 31.20 300.08
(+16.62%) (+45.45%) (+6.19%)

Note: Effectiveness is the ratio that is calculated based on the properties of Part A at the same fiber content as the properties of (Part A and Part B).

workability of the UHPC pastes. Li et al. [44] reported that the flow­ microstructure of carbon nanomaterials is shown in Fig. 28. Reda et al.
ability of UHPC decreased from 175.5 mm to 162 mm as the PP fiber [194] explained that the rough surface of carbon fibers provides a better
(Lf/Df = 12 mm/30 μm) content increased from 3% to 5%, and the SP connection between fiber and matrix. As can be seen from Fig. 28(c),
dosage kept constant at 0.04 (in weight). Ghasemzadeh Mosavinejad CNFs afford a stronger bond between fiber and matrix. It is reported that
et al. [189] found the flowability of UHPC reduced from 204 mm to 179 the use of CNTs provides fiber bridging effect, filler effect, and nano
mm when the content of PVA fiber increased from 0 to 1.2%. It can be effect which builds the denser microstructure of UHPC. Meng et al. [42]
found in Fig. 25(b), the flowability of UHPC decreased with a higher reported the cumulative heat of UHPC (at 72 h) with 0.3 vol% CNMs was
fiber content for all fiber types. 45% higher than that of reference samples, meaning CNMs enhance the
Regarding the durability of UHPC, the addition of PP fiber has a early age hydration of cement. Fig. 28(d) shows that the microstructure
beneficial effect on fire resistance. Li et al. [154] reported that the of UHPC with the CNTs attached to the cement hydrates. This leads to
weight loss of UHPC decreased with PP fibers addition after exposure to the formation of denser C–S–H in the matrix.
200 ◦ C. Meanwhile, the permeability of UHPC improved. Due to the Fig. 29 compares the mechanical properties of UHPC with the
melting and the expansion of PP fiber at high temperatures, the micro­ addition of different CNMs. It can be found that the tensile strength
cracks and tunnel formed in the matrix (Fig. 27(a)) which created an increased with increasing carbon nanomaterials contents [181]. The
inter-connected network and improved permeability of UHPC [44,154]. tensile strength improved by 55.65% when carbon nanofiber content
On the contrary, steel fiber can not develop the tunnels in the matrix was 0.3%. However, the compressive strength was slightly improved by
(Fig. 27(b)). Besides, Vincler et al. [190] tested the chloride diffusion 5–8 MPa. They described the improvement of CNFs on mechanical
coefficient of UHPC with 1 vol% PVA fibers, which is about one-fifth of properties to the uniform distribution of CNFs in the matrix. Similarly,
the no-fiber samples (10.79 × 10− 15 m2/s). the energy absorption capacity of UHPC with carbon nanofibers (CNFs)
increased by 110%, compared to that without CNFs [42]. The use of
4.2. Carbon fibers carbon nanomaterials improved the pore structure of UHPC. As shown in
Fig. 30(a), the use of 0.15% and 0.30% CNFs significantly refined the
Carbon nanomaterials (CNMs), which have excellent tensile pores at 10 μm and 40 nm.
strength, elastic modulus and electrical conductivity [191–193] are With the addition of CNMs, the hydration degree of the matrix in­
promising materials to reinforce UHPC. Carbon nanomaterials that are creases, which leads to increased autogenous shrinkage. As shown in
added into UHPC include carbon nanofibers (CNFs), carbon nanotubes Fig. 30(b), the use of three kinds of nanocarbon-materials CNF (Lf/Df =
(CNTs) and graphite nanoplatelets (GNPs) [42,181,194]. The 100 nm/(50–200 nm) × 103), GNP-C (Lf/Df = 25 nm/(2–10 nm)), GNP-

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Table 4
The summary of non-metallic fibers used in UHPC.
Fiber type Synthetic fibers Carbon fiber Mineral fibers Glass fiber Cellulose Al2O3
fiber nanofiber
PP fiber PVA fiber PE fiber CNF GNP CNT Basalt Wollastonite
fiber fiber

Length (mm) 6–18 9–12 18–19 0.05–0.2 (2–10) × (10–70) 12–18 3 12 2.1 10–65
10− 6 × 10− 6
Diameter 30–60 15–100 20–23 0.1 0.025–0.030 0.01–0.02 13–18 100 10 18 0.01–0.02
(μm)
Density (kg/ 910 1300 960–970 2000 1950 2100 2800 3000 2500 – –
m3)
Elastic 3.5 29.5–40 100–113 240 1000 – 86–90 303–530 29.5 – 400
modulus
(GPa)
Tensile 400 1230–1830 3000–3250 30 × 103 5 × 103 – – – 1510 600–900 12000
strength
(MPa)
Fiber content 0.2–2 0.3–1 1–1.5 0.05–0.3 0.05–0.3 0.1–0.3 1–2 12A 0.5–2.5 0.7–1.1B 0.1–0.5
(%)
Compressive ↑(-3.3)- ↓2.4% – ↑1.2–3.5% ↑0.1–5.8% ↑5.5–17% ↑(-1.5)- ↑3.2–4.3% ↓11% ↑(-0.1)- ↑30%
strength- 11.6% 7.2% 1.3%
28d
Tensile ↑(-13.3)- – ↑16% ↑6.3–45.6% ↑20–43.2% – – – –
strength- 1.6%
28d
Flexural – – – ↑5.7–45.7% ↑9.8–59.5% – ↑12.2% – ↑3.1–20.7% ↑26–36.3% –
strength-
28d
Autogenous – – – ↓30% ↓20% – ↓29.7%C ↓31% – ↓33% –
shrinkage-
7d
Reference [23,44, [38,177] [59,178, [42,180, [42,181] [43,182] [38,183, [38,40,41] [184] [142] [185,186]
159] 179] 181] 184]

Note: Effectiveness (%) is the ratio of the different properties of UHPC samples with non-metallic fibers compared to those of samples without fiber reinforcement. A:
Fiber content is the volume ratio of fiber to cement. B: Fiber content is 0.7–1.1 kg/m3. C: Autogenous shrinkage at 28-day. ↑ stands for increase, ↓ stands for decrease.

M (Lf/Df = 30 nm/(2–10 nm)) all increased the autogenous shrinkage of

UHPC.

4.3. Mineral fibers

The use of mineral fibers, such as basalt fiber and wollastonite fiber,
could improve the mechanical properties of concrete. In addition,
mineral fibers are cheaper than steel fibers and have no corrosion issues.
Thus, they are also used in UHPC. Basalt fiber is a natural material that is
formed by volcanic rocks with an extremely melting temperature of
1450–1500 ◦ C [196,197]. Wollastonite fiber is one of the natural silicate
Fig. 23. Microstructure of the fiber-matrix interfacial zone: (a) steel fiber [33];
fibers which is composed of SiO2, CaO and Al2O3 [198,199]. The
(b) PE fiber [59].
microstructure of these two types of fiber is shown in Fig. 31. The
component of basalt fiber is similar to cementitious materials, which
helps to resist the deformation of the matrix and results in stronger
fiber-matrix bonding strength [39,57].
Lam et al. [183] reported that the compressive strength and flexural
strength of UHPC with 1.5 vol% basalt fibers increased by 7.22% and
12.25%, respectively, as shown in Fig. 32(a). Meanwhile, Hannawi et al.
[38] found that the addition of basalt fiber increased the elastic modulus
of UHPC by 2.67%. Soliman et al. [41] compared the effect of wollas­
tonite microfibers with different fiber aspect ratios on the autogenous
shrinkage of UHPC. As shown in Fig. 32(b), the addition of wollastonite
microfibers reduced the autogenous shrinkage. This is explained by that
wollastonite fiber can adsorb water on its surface and provide the in­
ternal curing effect for UHPC. Wollastonite fiber with lower aspect ratio
(type 3 in Fig. 32(b)) had the lowest autogenous shrinkage than other
mixtures due to the early expansion. The expansion is caused by the
separation pressure generated because of the adsorption of water on the
surface of very fine microfibers [41]. In another study, Soliman et al.
[40] reported that the use of 12 vol% (the ratio to cement) wollastonite
Fig. 24. Compressive strength of UHPC with different types of fibers [38].
fiber improved the 28-day compressive strength of UHPC by 4.33%,
compared to that of UHCP without fibers.

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 25. Effect of fiber type and content on the engineering properties of UHPC [184]: (a) mechanical properties; (b) flowability.

Fig. 26. Schematic diagram of fiber treatment (sol-gel method) on PVA fibers [177].

and diameter were between 10 and 65 μm and 10–20 nm, respectively. It

is found that the use of Al2O3 nanofiber enhanced the heat release of
UHPC at 40 h. In addition, Al2O3 nanofiber acted as seeding sites for
C–S–H gels, as the hydration productions appear around the fibers as
shown in Fig. 34(b). Muzenski et al. [186] reported that with the Al2O3
nanofiber dosage of 0.25%, the compressive strength of UHPC was 200
MPa, increased by 30% compared to the reference mixture (UHPC with
only 2% PVA fiber).

5. The use of hybrid fibers in UHPC

The aim of using hybrid fibers in UHPC is to achieve the synergistic

Fig. 27. Microstructure of UHPC after 200 ◦ C heating exposure: (a) PP fiber effect of different fibers in practice [202,203]. Table 5 summarizes some
[44]; (b) steel fiber [154].
research about the effect of hybrid fibers on the mechanical properties of
UHPC. In most studies, the use of other types of fibers to partially replace
4.4. Other fibers steel fibers had a limited or even negative effect on the compressive
strength. Kang et al. [58] used the hybrid fibers of 1 vol% steel fiber
Cellulose fiber, as a natural polymer, produced from the wood was (0.67% long fiber (Lf/Df = 19.5 mm/200 μm) and 0.33% short fiber
used to act as an internal curing material to restrain the shrinkage of (Lf/Df = 16.3 mm/200 μm) and 0.5% basalt fiber(Lf/Df = 122 μm/12
concrete [148,200]. Ma et al. [142] reported when the dosage of cel­ μm) to prepare UHPC. They found that the compressive strength with
lulose fiber was 0.9 kg/m3, the 7-day and 60-day autogenous shrinkage hybrid fibers was about 14.09% lower than that of steel fiber (1.0 vol%
of UHPC was about 36 με and 187 με, respectively, which is lower than long fiber and 0.5% short fiber). However, the use of hybrid fiber
the reference mixture (121 με and 284 με, respectively). As shown in improved the tensile strength of UHPC by 3.08%. As shown in Fig. 35,
Fig. 33(a), the microstructure of CF was compact and dense. The use of the use of hybrid steel fiber and PP fiber provides a synergetic effect on
CF helps restrict the crack width and promote the durability of concrete the macro crack initiation of concrete. The failure mechanism of hybrid
[201]. With the optimal CF dosage of 1.1 kg/m3, the flexural strength fibers was a combination of steel fiber pulling out and the failure of PP
and compressive strength of UHPC were improved by 36.25% and fiber.
1.27%, respectively (shown in Fig. 33(b)). Smarzewski et al. [204] evaluated the effect of hybrid fibers of 0.75
The use of Al2O3 nanofiber in UHPC as reported in Refs. [185,186]. vol% steel fiber(Lf/Df = 19.5 mm/200 μm) and 0.25 vol% PP fiber (Lf/Df
The microstructure of Al2O3 nanofiber is shown in Fig. 34(a). Its length = 18 mm/12 μm) on the mechanical properties of UHPC. Compared to

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Fig. 28. SEM images of CNMs in UHPC matrix: (a) CNTs [195]; (b) CNFs [180]; (c) the matrix with CNFs [181]; (d) the matrix with CNTs [43].

Fig. 29. Effect of CNMs on the mechanical properties of UHPC at 28-days: (a) the inclusion of 0.3 vol% GNP-C, GNP-M and CNFs [181]; (b) the inclusion of different
CNF contents [43].

Fig. 30. Micro-properties of UHPC with carbon nanomaterials [42]: (a) pore distribution after 28d; (b) the 28d-autogenous shrinkage with different types of CNMs.

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

fiber, and 1% steel fiber, the porosity of UHPC was lower than that of
1.5% steel fiber. In addition, the relative permeation coefficient of UHPC
with hybrid fibers decreased by 70.5%, compared to the mixture of 1.5%
steel fiber. The use of hybrid fibers can reduce the inner microcracks
propagation and reduce the sizes of pores of UHPC, thus improving the
microstructure of UHPC.

6. Fiber treatment

In recent years, the utilization of steel fibers in UHPC has been

focused on the reformed steel fibers as follows: (a) modifying the
Fig. 31. SEM images of: (a) basalt fiber [198] and (b) wollastonite fiber [199]. properties of fibers, and (b) controlling the surface roughness of fibers.
The use of nano-silica particles can effectively enhance the fiber-matrix
the use of only steel fibers, hybrid fiber reduced the compressive bond strength [209,210]. Oh et al. [188] coated the nano-silica particles
strength and tensile strength by 6.58% and 2.17%, respectively. How­ on the surfaces of steel fibers. They reported that this surface treatment
ever, the tensile strain capacity of UHPC increased by 29.7%. Fig. 36(a) method led to the formation of hydration products on the surface of steel
shows that the tensile strength of UHPC with 1 vol% steel fiber and 0.2 fibers, as shown in Fig. 38. Therefore, these samples showed a higher
vol% PP fibers are similar to that of 2 vol% steel fibers. Kang et al. [205] bond strength (14.05 MPa) and tensile strength (17.28 MPa) than those
found that the tensile strain capacity for UHPC with hybrid fibers (1%
steel fiber and 0.5% PE fiber) was 29.7% higher than the specimen with
only 1% steel fibers. Moreover, the use of hybrid fiber is able to enhance
the ductility of concrete [207]. The chloride ion permeability of UHPC
with hybrid fibers is shown in Fig. 36(b). The combination of steel fiber
and PP fiber immensely reduces the chloride ion permeability of UHPC.
It indicates that the use of hybrid fibers is a potential way to improve the
durability of UHPC
The hybrid fibers also provide a beneficial effect on the autogenous
shrinkage of UHPC. Meng et al. [53] reported that the 56-day autoge­
nous shrinkage of UHPC with 0.5% PVA fiber and 1.5% straight fiber
was reduced by 40% compared to that of 2% straight steel fiber, as
shown in Fig. 37. The mixture of H1S1 (hybrid 1% hooked-end fiber and
1% straight fiber) has the lowest autogenous shrinkage of UHPC. Sun Fig. 34. SEM images of (a) Al2O3 nanofiber and (b) UHPC matrix with Al2O3
et al. [208] reported that with the hybrid of 0.25% PVA fiber, 0.25% PP nanofiber [186].

Fig. 32. Effect of mineral fibers on UHPC: (a) mechanical properties with basalt fiber [183]; (b) autogenous shrinkage with different fiber aspect ratios of
wollastonite microfibers [41].

Fig. 33. (a) SEM images of cellulose fiber and (b) mechanical properties of UHPC with different cellulose fiber contents [142].

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

Table 5
Effect of different types of hybrid fiber on the mechanical properties of UHPC.
Ref. Reference sample Hybrid fibers Properties (effectiveness-%)

Name Vf Name Vf

(%) (%)

[53] Steel 2 Steel + PVA 1.5 + 0.5 Compressive strength Flexural strength First cracking strength
160.0 MPa 23.42 MPa 15.22 MPa
(+4.58%) (+9.86%) (+4.83%)
[142] Steel 2.5 Steel + CF 2.5 + 0.011 Compressive strength Flexural strength
193.9 MPa 41.82 MPa
(+1.61%) (+36.31%)
[204] Steel 1 Steel + PP 0.75 + 0.25 Compressive strength Splitting tensile strength Tensile strain capacity
144.7 MPa 13.5 MPa 9.8 MPa
(-6.58%) (-2.17%) (+29.7%)
[58] Steel 1.5 Steel + Basalt 1.0 + 0.5 Compressive strength Tensile strength First cracking strength
128.2 MPa 14.74 MPa 13.42 MPa
(-14.09%) (+3.08%) (+36.94%)
Steel + PVA 1.0 + 0.5 143.0 MPa 11.84 MPa 8.71 MPa
(-4.03%) (-17.2%) (-11.12%)
Steel + PE 1.0 + 0.5 142.0 MPa 16.21 MPa 11.13 MPa
(-4.7%) (+13.36%) (+13.57%)
[205] Steel 1.5 Steel + PE 1 + 0.5 Compressive strength Tensile strength Tensile strain capacity
138 MPa 15.75 MPa 1.22%
(-5.5%) （-2.2%） (+29.7%)

Fig. 35. The images of fiber bridge action: (a) crack section with steel fibers; (b) crack section with PP fiber; (c) crack section with hybrid fibers [206].

Fig. 36. Properties of UHPC with hybrid steel fibers and PP fibers [23]: (a) tensile strength; (b) chloride ion permeability.

of samples with plain steel fibers (6.26 MPa, 17.02 MPa). Yoo et al. strength, Qu et al. [213] modified the surface of steel fibers by ZnPh
[211] modified the surface of steel fibers by using an electrolyte solution chemical treatment. It is reported that ZnPh can provide a protective
comprising ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). The pullout energy layer to steel fibers through the “solution recrystallization process”
and tensile strength were improved approximately by 26% and 17%, when ZnPh transfers to the surface of steel fibers.
respectively, owing to the surface roughness of steel fibers being
enhanced by the surface treatment. Chun et al. [212] adopted sanded 7. Conclusions and prospects
straight steel fibers into UHPC and it enhanced the slip-hardening be­
haviors of UHPC. It is noted that the vertical sanding direction was The use of fibers is essential in UHPC, the incorporation of which is
recommended to improve both bond strength and slip-hardening char­ able to enhance the ductility, mechanical properties and durability of
acteristics. However, the parallel sanding direction only exhibited UHPC. This paper reviewed the commonly used fibers in UHPC from the
enhancement in bond strength. In order to improve fiber-matrix bonding bond mechanism to the macro engineering properties. The hybrid of

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J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

brittleness of matrix and high bonding strength between

deformed fiber to the matrix, the splitting cracks are formed in
the surrounding matrix. Fibers with a higher fiber aspect ratio
exhibit higher flexural strength. Steel fibers reduce the autoge­
nous shrinkage and improved durability.
(3) Synthetic fibers and mineral fibers have their characteristic na­
tures compared to steel fibers. The inclusion of synthetic fibers (e.
g. PP fibers, PVA fibers, PE fibers) improves the toughness and
durability of UHPC. Basalt fibers are chemically similar to the
UHPC matrix. Thus, they can provide stronger fiber-matrix
bonding strength than the other fibers. The use of wollastonite
microfibers reduces the degree of reaction of UHPC due to its
dilution effect, which leads to lower autogenous shrinkage.
(4) Carbon fibers, e.g. CNFs, CNTs and GNPs, have the nano-size
effect and accelerate the hydration of UHPC. Thus, the incorpo­
ration of carbon fibers improves the microstructure of UHPC and
leads to higher mechanical properties. Cellulose fiber can reduce
the early shrinkage of UHPC as the internal curing agent due to its
lumen structure.
(5) The use of hybrid fibers can improve the engineering perfor­
Fig. 37. Autogenous shrinkage of UHPC with hybrid fibers [53]. (PVA0.5S1.5 mance of UHPC. The hybridization of steel fibers and PP fibers
stands for the combination of 0.5% PVA and 1.5% straight steel fiber; H1S1 can reduce the chloride ion permeability and improve the fire
stands for 1% hooked-end fiber and 1% straight steel fiber). resistance of UHPC. A combination of fibers with different
geometrical sizes is able to effectively resist cracks initiation of
UHPC.

According to the above analysis, some future research trends have

been concluded as follows:

(1) Although UHPC with deformed steel fiber exhibits higher

bonding strength in the single pullout experiment, the mechani­
cal properties with deformed fibers are lower than those of
straight steel fibers in some cases. Further research is needed to
guarantee the effectiveness of deformed fibers.
(2) Non-metallic fibers such as synthetic fibers, mineral fibers, car­
bon fibers usually have their unique influences on the perfor­
mance of UHPC. The utilization of these fibers to enhance the
performance of UHPC according to their characteristics is worth
studying. More studies on fiber treatments, including physical or
chemical methods, to improve fiber-matrix bonding properties
are highly demanded in future research.
(3) Even though some studies have been carried out on the use of
hybrid fibers in UHPC, the mechanism of the synergistic effect of
hybrid fibers remains unclear. Further research is needed to
Fig. 38. SEM image of pullout steel fibers: (a) plain steel fiber and (b) steel
optimize the combination of hybrid fibers to improve the
fiber coated nano-silica particles [188].
microstructure, mechanical properties and durability of UHPC.

fibers with different types and dimensions was emphatically discussed. Declaration of competing interest
The main conclusions were drawn as follows:
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
(1) The reinforcing effect of steel fibers in UHPC is determined by the interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
adhesion bonding between the fibers and matrix. The bond the work reported in this paper.
properties, which are usually evaluated by the single pullout test,
are related to the preparation process of UHPC, fiber content, Acknowledgments
fiber shape, fiber distribution and orientation. Optimization of
the fiber distribution and orientation improved the fiber-bridging The authors thank the National Science Fund for Distinguished
effect in UHPC, transferring most stress from the matrix to the Young Scholars (51925802), the National Natural Science Foundation of
fiber. It is suggested that the fiber orientation angle should be China (No. 52078149, 11972123), Guangdong International Science
lower than 45◦ and the fiber content is generally not higher than and Technology Project (No. 2020A0505100006), 111 Project (No.
3% to avoid fiber agglomeration. D21021), Key Project of Strategy Consulting of Chinese Academy of
(2) Compared with straight steel fibers, the use of deformed steel Engineering (Grant No.2021-XZ-37), and the Innovation Research for
fibers provides additional mechanical anchorage to improve the the Postgraduates of Guangzhou University under Grant (2020GDJC-
fiber-matrix bonding properties. However, the use of deformed D17) for funding the project.
fibers in some cases exhibited lower mechanical properties due to
two reasons: (I) deformed fibers are easy to bundle with each
other which results in poor fiber dispersion; (II) due to the high

18
J. Gong et al. Composites Part B 241 (2022) 109995

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