# Mechanical Strength Characterization of Plastic Fiber Reinforced Cement Concrete Composites
###### Abstract  
The reinforcing efficiency of plastic fibers obtained from shredded plastic waste was tested in plain concrete mixes and experimentally verified in this study. Plastic fibers up to 0.15% V\({}_{\text{f}}\) were added to the design concrete mix to assess the fiber effectiveness in terms of improved load carrying capability of various plastic fiber incorporated concrete composites. The effects of plastic fibers distributed homogenously in the entire depth of concrete and confined in the tension zone were evaluated in flexural bending properties. Mechanical strength properties were evaluated for two different types of concrete containing (i) plastic fibers added homogenously throughout the entire depth of concrete and (ii) the plastic fibers confined in the tension zone only. Flexural bending parameters such as toughness, residual strength, crack width, post-peak drop load resistance, and fiber performance index of various plastic fiber substituted concrete mixes were tested in compressive and flexural bending to assess the fiber reinforcing efficiency. Test results indicated that the plastic fibers added in tension zone confinement exhibited higher flexural strength (5.26 N/mm\({}^{2}\)) improvements compared to homogeneously distributed concrete systems. Flexural bending characteristics in terms of absolute toughness and post peak strain softening were found to be appreciably higher (132%) in tension zone confined plastic fiber concretes compared to homogeneous fiber concrete systems. plastic fibers; tension zone; post-crack toughness; residual strength; strain hardening 10.390/app11020852  
production. Effective utilization of plastic waste can save the surrounding environment from pollution and can beneficially increase the plastic waste consumption in concrete systems. There have been few research works to beneficiate the plastic waste addition in concrete systems and some of the salient works are reviewed further. A new type of plastic concrete was developed using Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibers and an optimal fiber volume fraction of 0.2% addition was found to increase the compressive strength, splitting strength, ductility, and toughness without decreasing the elastic modulus [2]. The reliable application of flexible plastic fiber concrete was tested in the tunnel lining to prevent the damage caused by the fault movement. Test results indicated that the plastic strain added near the flexible joints in concrete provides favorable ductility and toughness properties, leading to less deformation. The beneficial use of discarded synthetic plastic wastes was studied to analyze the failure mechanisms in compression, splitting failure, and in flexural bending modes [3]. Plastic materials have been widely used in soft drink bottles and are most commonly used as packaging materials for processed food products. In addition, the plastic containers are typically used for industrial liquid storageas a thermal resistant sealant material and in many household wrapping consumables. There have been several treatment methods practiced for the safe disposal of synthetic wastes, but most treatment methods have not been effective in terms of excessive plastic waste generation. In another study, the mechanical properties of shredded plastic Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) were investigated as partial replacement materials for aggregate. Experimental results on the mechanical properties of concrete and mortar were found to be typically altered with the size of PET flakes [4; 5; 6]. In another study, waste plastic was used as an aggregate replacement for partial replacement of sand at 0%, 10%, 15%, and 20% and proved to be beneficial in improving the compressive properties as well as crack arresting mechanism. However, with an increase in percentage replacement of plastic aggregate, he compressive and flexural strength, modulus of elasticity, and bond strength were found to be affected [7].