Post-Cracking Capacity of Glass Beams Reinforced with Steel Fibers

A study concerning the flexural behavior of glass beams reinforced with steel fibers is presented in this paper. Two types of steel fibers were used for reinforcement, made of high strength and stainless steel. The coupling effect of the two materials was studied in terms of energy dissipation and failure loads, by comparing the elastic limits and the post-elastic behaviors of the reinforced glass beams. Results demonstrated that it is possible to increase the overall structural safety of a steel fiber reinforced glass beam. The relationship between the bending force and deflections was initially linear, however, following the opening of first cracks in the glass, the reinforcement steel material was able to withstand the tensile stresses, governing the overall post-elastic phase.