Fracture Behavior of Steel Slag Powder-Cement-Based Concrete with Different Steel-Slag-Powder Replacement Ratios

The influence of different replacement ratios of steel-slag powder as cement-replacement material on the fracture performance of concrete is studied in this paper. A three-point bending fracture test is carried out on slag powder-cement-based concrete (SPC)-notched beams with steel-slag powder as cementitious materials, partially replacing cement (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%). Load-deflection curves and load-crack-opening displacement curves of SPC-notched beams with five different replacement ratios of steel-slag powder were obtained. The effects of different steel-slag-powder replacement ratios on the fracture properties (fracture energy, fracture toughness, and double-K fracture parameters) of the SPC were analyzed and discussed. The results showed that the incorporation of appropriate steel-slag powder can affect the fracture performance of SPC. Compared with concrete without steel-slag powder, adding appropriate steel-slag powder can effectively improve the bond performance between aggregate and matrix because the steel-slag powder contains hydration activity substances such as calcium oxide and aluminium trioxide. The fracture energy and fracture toughness of SPC increased and then decreased with the increase in steel-slag-powder replacement ratios, and the SPC concrete showed best fracture performance with a 5% steel slag powder replacement ratio. Its fracture energy increases by 13.63% and fracture toughness increases by 53.22% compared with NC.