Flexural deformation behaviour of two-way slabs reinforced with African fan palm bars (AFP) of varying tensile strengths

This experimental study investigated the flexural strength and deformation of fan palm reinforced two-way concrete slabs subjected to concentrated central load. With increasing interest in sustainable and low-cost construction materials, particularly in developing countries, the use of the African fan palm (AFP) offers a promising solution. Known for its tensile strength and durability, the AFP is widely used in structural construction such as roof works. In this study, a total of 12 concrete slabs reinforced with varying percentages of AFP ratios and 2 slabs with steel reinforcement were cast. Out of the 14 slabs, 12 were tested monotonically and 2 subjected to cyclic loading. The mid-span deflection, crack pattern, ultimate load capacity and failure modes of the slabs were recorded and evaluated. Results indicated that the ratio of the average experimental failure loads (Pult) to theoretical failure loads (P’ult) of all fan palm reinforced slabs TWS1-TWS6 and TWS8 -TWS13 ranged from 1.46 to 1.31 compared to the steel reinforced slabs that varied from 1.47 to 1.36. This is a good indicator of the margin of safety exhibited by the fan palm and steel bars respectively. The fan palm reinforced slabs exhibited lower ultimate load carrying capacity than the steel-reinforced slabs. Furthermore, additional load capacity was observed with increase tensile ratio of fan palm. Hence, this study proposes an ideal limit of tensile ratios for an under-reinforced fan palm concrete slab section based on IS 456:2000.