Comparative study on the effect of fiber type and content on the performance of one-part alkali-activated mortar

One-part alkali-activated material (AAMs) have proven to be an environment-friendly and sustainable alternative for the Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) whose production is associated with high carbon footprint. Alkali activated materials have good strength and durability properties. However, they exhibit relatively low flexure strength, tensile strength, strain capacity and brittleness, which in some cases limits their application. In this article, the behavior one-part alkali-activated fly ash slag-based mortar reinforced with Micro-steel, PVA and Basalt Fiber is investigated. The effect of fiber type and content on one-part alkali-activated composites in terms of slump flow, water absorption, compressive strength, flexure strength, splitting tensile strength, load deflection curve under flexure and splitting tensile strength was evaluated. The results depicted an improvement in the mechanical performance of the one-part alkali-activated mortar with inclusion of all three types of fibers. Micro-steel fibers were most beneficial in improving displacement capacity under tensile load while PVA fibers addition significantly improved the strength properties of the mix. Basalt fibers also yielded positive results in terms of mechanical properties and showed potential to be a good enhancer of mechanical properties in one-part alkali-activated composites.