RATTAN CANE REINFORCED CONCRETE SLAB AS A COMPONENT FOR AGRICULTURAL STRUCTURES
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Date
2017
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Nigerian Journal Pure and Applied Science
Abstract
The potentials of Rattan Cane as a reinforcement material in concrete slabs were investigated. The principal objective was to determine the flexural strength of rattan cane reinforced concrete slabs. The use of steel reinforced concrete façade is gradually becoming unpopular due to the susceptible nature of mild steel to corrosion. This study investigated experimentally the flexural strength of Eremospatha macrocarpa canes reinforced concrete slab in terms of the maximum load the slabs could withstand under axial loading. The research investigated the feasibility of constructing lightweight slabs using rattan cane reinforcements as a replacement for corrosion-prone steel in lightweight construction. Ten slabs of 0.125 m2 and concrete over of 20 mm were constructed for rattan cane and steel reinforcements using the ratio 1:2:4:0.5 for cement, fine aggregate, coarse aggregate and water respectively. The slabs were subjected to incremental third point loading until failure occurred. Deflection and crack width were measured simultaneously at the instance of the first crack and at the point of failure. The results for both types of reinforcements were compared and it showed that the rattan cane reinforced panels failed at 6.53kN load while steel reinforced slabs failed at 12.15 kN. It was observed that steel reinforced slabs had a deflection and crack width of 1.75mm and 0.063 mm respectively while rattan cane reinforced slabs recorded a deflection and crack width of 0.94 mm and 0.002 mm respectively. The flexural strength of 15 N/mm2 and 9.75 N/mm was recorded for steel and rattan reinforced slabs, respectively. The ultimate load and flexural strength of rattan cane were lower than the steel reinforcement, as a result, rattan reinforced slabs can be used in the construction of silo, piggery and cattle barn floors.
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Keywords
Rattan canes, steel, deflection, reinforcement, corrosion, flexural, crack width, point load