Use of waste tire steel beads in Portland cement concrete

Large quantities of waste tires are generated every year. The proper disposal of the tires creates an increasing problem that needs to be addressed. Many researchers have investigated the use of recycled tire products in several traditional Civil Engineering materials. The use of crumb rubber and tire chips in Portland cement concrete has been the subject of many research projects over the last years. This study is focusing on the use of steel beads, a by-product of the tire recycling process, in concrete mixtures. Different concrete specimens were fabricated and tested in uniaxial compression and splitting tension. The main variable in the mixtures was the volumetric percentage of the steel beads. The experimental results indicate that although the compressive strength is reduced when steel beads are used, the toughness of the material greatly increases. Moreover, the workability of the mixtures fabricated was not significantly affected.