Influence of UHMWPE fibers on the flexural performance of GFRP reinforced concrete slabs

Influence of UHMWPE fibers on the flexural performance of GFRP reinforced concrete slabs | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Influence of UHMWPE fibers on the flexural performance of GFRP reinforced concrete slabs liangli xiao, Yongfan Chen, Yan Liu, Chengxiang Xu This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract This research investigates how varying volume fractions of ultra-high molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers impact the flexural performance of concrete slabs reinforced with glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars. By conducting static bending tests on six distinct concrete slabs with three loading points, the study examines the effects of UHMWPE fibers on factors such as deflection, ultimate bearing capacity, crack distribution, and longitudinal steel strain in steel and GFRP-reinforced concrete slabs. The results of the study suggest incorporating UHMWPE fibers can effectively enhance the typically brittle failure mode of GFRP bars and improve the ultimate bearing capacity of GFRP bar-concrete slabs. Specifically, the research highlights that a 0.5% UHMWPE fiber concentration demonstrates the most significant inhibitory effect on mid-span deformation and longitudinal reinforcement strain growth in GFRP-reinforced concrete slabs. However, this inhibitory effect diminishes as the volume fraction of UHMWPE fiber reaches 0.7%. Finally, a calculation method for the flexural load-carrying capacity of GFRP-reinforced UHMWPE fiber concrete slabs is proposed, along with a coefficient k (set at 0.8) representing the effect of UHMWPE fibers on the tensile strength of concrete. GFRP bars UHMWPE fiber Concrete slab Flexural behavior Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7168072","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":491445180,"identity":"8572d10f-a38d-4536-986b-1c194cfaa8b1","order_by":0,"name":"liangli xiao","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAABAUlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACZiB+YAAk2BkbH0DFDAhrSQCpYWZsBlEShLWAQAJEL5sEUVoMjjM/fJBQYJcn78zcVs3bVlfHwN68TYKh5g5OLZLNbMYGCQbJxYaHGdtu87YdlmDgOVYmwXDsGU4t/MwMZhIJBsyJG5uBWnLbDkgwSOSYSTA2HMaphY2Z/RtQSz1YS3FuW50Eg/wb/Fr4mXlAthxOnM/M2Mac28YMtIUHvxbJZp5ioF+OJ24ABrL0n3OHJdt40ootEo7h1mJw/vjGBx/+VCfOb29/+HFGWR0/P/vhjTc+1ODWgtB7AOY7EJFAWAMDg3wDMapGwSgYBaNgRAIAuLdLIlyPXJUAAAAASUVORK5CYII=","orcid":"","institution":"Wuhan University of Science and Technology","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"liangli","middleName":"","lastName":"xiao","suffix":""},{"id":491445182,"identity":"8f1137f2-9db8-4269-980f-ad1885c47455","order_by":1,"name":"Yongfan Chen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Wuhan University of Science and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yongfan","middleName":"","lastName":"Chen","suffix":""},{"id":491445184,"identity":"29539499-c295-4ef8-aa63-c54d3c647111","order_by":2,"name":"Yan Liu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Wuhan University of Science and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Yan","middleName":"","lastName":"Liu","suffix":""},{"id":491445187,"identity":"44401714-160e-47bb-9985-bd1295e97bde","order_by":3,"name":"Chengxiang Xu","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Wuhan University of Science and Technology","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Chengxiang","middleName":"","lastName":"Xu","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-07-20 07:23:09","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":102946033,"identity":"53838031-ea53-4ab6-bf7c-3ad1504f1b5c","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-02-18 18:39:23","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":828375,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7168072/v1_covered_2c567de1-bbd4-4402-8c78-a60ec7ca6562.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Influence of UHMWPE fibers on the flexural performance of GFRP reinforced concrete slabs","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"GFRP bars, UHMWPE fiber, Concrete slab, Flexural behavior","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eThis research investigates how varying volume fractions of ultra-high molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers impact the flexural performance of concrete slabs reinforced with glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars. By conducting static bending tests on six distinct concrete slabs with three loading points, the study examines the effects of UHMWPE fibers on factors such as deflection, ultimate bearing capacity, crack distribution, and longitudinal steel strain in steel and GFRP-reinforced concrete slabs. The results of the study suggest incorporating UHMWPE fibers can effectively enhance the typically brittle failure mode of GFRP bars and improve the ultimate bearing capacity of GFRP bar-concrete slabs. Specifically, the research highlights that a 0.5% UHMWPE fiber concentration demonstrates the most significant inhibitory effect on mid-span deformation and longitudinal reinforcement strain growth in GFRP-reinforced concrete slabs. However, this inhibitory effect diminishes as the volume fraction of UHMWPE fiber reaches 0.7%. Finally, a calculation method for the flexural load-carrying capacity of GFRP-reinforced UHMWPE fiber concrete slabs is proposed, along with a coefficient k (set at 0.8) representing the effect of UHMWPE fibers on the tensile strength of concrete.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Influence of UHMWPE fibers on the flexural performance of GFRP reinforced concrete slabs","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-07-30 11:36:30","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7168072/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"6e519a33-7d90-477d-b9d0-66ca43b81e79","owner":[],"postedDate":"July 30th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-02-18T18:38:09+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-07-30 11:36:30","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7168072","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7168072","identity":"rs-7168072","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}