Influence of date palm fiber and shrinkage reducing admixture on self-compacting concrete performance at early age in hot-dry environment

•The possibility of DPF valorization in SCC is assessed, compared to a commercial SRA.•DPF has similar effect to SRA on SCC properties improvement in hot-dry conditions.•DPF reduced SCC early age drying shrinkage and cracking risk compared to a reference mix.•DPF slightly decreased SCC compressive strength and increased porosity.•DPF showed good performance in both extreme and laboratory conditions.

This study is a contribution to the valorization of date palm fiber (DPF), which improve sustainability by substituting non-renewable raw materials by natural renewable resources and reducing construction costs. In this work, the influence of DPF and shrinkage reducing admixture (SRA) on self-compacting concrete (SCC) exposed to hot-dry and laboratory conditions during the first 24 h was assessed at early ages and on hardened properties. Two volume fractions, 0.1 and 0.2% by volume, of short DPF (1 and 2 cm in length) and 2% volume fraction of SRA by amount of cement were considered. A total of 14 mixtures were tested and several early age parameters were measured, as early age drying shrinkage and cracking, capillary pressure, temperature, ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV), and weight loss and hardened compressive strength, ultrasonic modulus and apparent porosity. Results showed that DPF produced on SCC similar effects to SRA in hot-dry environment, due to their ability to reduce early age drying shrinkage and cracking risk of the SCC.