Punching Shear Capacity of Polystyrene Lightweight Concrete Two-Way Slabs
Abstract
This research focuses on investigating the mechanical behavior and punching shear capacity of two-way slabs constructed using lightweight concrete incorporating Expanded Polystyrene beads (EPS). Experimental investigation has been conducted to assess the impact of incorporating EPS beads, Master Glenium 51 superplasticizer and silica fume on the punching shear capacity of the lightweight concrete slabs. The obtained results indicate that slabs containing lightweight concrete alone exhibited the lowest punching shear capacity, approximately 22.5% less than the control sample that was made only from normal weight concrete. However, the incorporation of Master Glenium 51 superplasticizer and silica fume significantly improved the punching shear capacity, nearly matching the performance of the control sample made of normal weight concrete. Additionally, it was observed that replacing 12.5% of the coarse aggregate and 25% of the fine aggregate with Expanded Polystyrene beads (EPS) led to a 15% reduction in the concrete's weight compared to regular concrete. The obtained results were compared with calculations based on the ACI 318-19 code to evaluate its accuracy in predicting the behavior of lightweight concrete with EPS beads, and it’s noteworthy that all results for all samples showed close alignment. These findings provide valuable insights into the performance of lightweight concrete with EPS beads and highlight the potential benefits of using Master Glenium 51 superplasticizer and silica fume in enhancing punching shear capacity.