Analysis of fracture tests of glass fibre reinforced cement (GRC) using digital image correlation

In the last decades GRC has been used in buildings and infrastructure, although there is insufficient data available related with its fracture energy. In order to expand knowledge in the field, the fracture energy in perpendicular and parallel directions with respect to the fibres is obtained. Three types of GRC with different formulations are tested. The results show that the fracture energy of a GRC with a 25% addition of a pozzolanic admixture is 40% and 8% higher than a standard GRC in, respectively, each orientation. Similarly, an addition of 25% of heat-treated kaolin to a standard GRC increases its fracture energy up to 490% and 400% depending on the given orientation. Moreover, the applicability of digital image correlation (DIC) to GRC fracture tests is shown. The use of DIC enables a description of the damaging patterns and explanation of the behaviours identified in the fracture tests performed.