Abstract:
Reinforced concrete is building material widely used in construction industry in the world.
Currently it’s also major construction material in Ethiopia at several areas to construct different
structures. Beam is one of structural elements constructed by reinforced concrete which is
composed of plain concrete, longitudinal reinforcement and shear reinforcement.
In this paper, the effect of steel wire mesh as replacement of shear reinforcement stirrups on
reinforced concrete beam was studied. The replacement of wire mesh was equivalent based upon
weight with stirrups. Main parameters considered to study was wire mesh change in diameter,
spacing, number of wire mesh layers and combination of steel wire mesh with stirrups.
Nonlinear finite element using ABAQUS 6.14 simulation compared with experimental conducted
result. The numerical simulation of control beam by finite element have a difference of ultimate
load of failure and maximum mid-span displacement when compared with experimental results
about 11% and 15% respectively. Depend on control specimen, geometrical cross section for all
beam model was 100 mm x150 mm x 1200 mm of width, depth and span length respectively.
Total of 29 specimens were modeled respective to their parameters of study.
The results under change of diameter indicate as diameter increases ultimate load of failure
increment about 19.8% and 39.59% respectively but as decrease diameter decrement by 4.08%
as compared with control specimen. Change in spacing of wire mesh increment ultimate load of
failure as spacing close to each other about 19.8% and 4.79% but as spacing increase
decrement by 6.6% when compared with control specimen. For parameters conducted under
change in wire mesh layers number of wire mesh layers increases failure load capacity about
51.14%, 38.38% and 22.78% respectively as compared with control specimen. In addition to this
using combination of wire mesh with stirrups result give increment load carrying capacity about
2.88% and 19.45%. Number of mesh layers for different spacing have maximum shear stress
increment about 71%, 50% and 31.41% respectively as compared to control specimen.
Stiffness increment under change steel wire mesh diameter was about 0.8%, 16.94% and 31.05%
respectively as compared with control. Ultimate load increases as diameter and layers increase
also as close spacing of wire mesh. In Addition to this combination of wire mesh with stirrups
increase shear capacity of beam.
