Flexural and fracture behavior of high-performance concrete using notch specimen

Abstract

This study investigated the mechanical properties of high-performance concrete using notched specimens. All
flexural specimens had an identical geometry of 40×40×160 mm3 with a span length of 120 mm. Four notchto-depth ratios were as follows: 0 (N0 series), 0.125 (N1 series), 0.250 (N2 series), and 0.375 (N3 series), which
were designed at the specimen bottom of midspan section. The investigation focused on the four parameters
of high-performance concrete, including load carrying, deflection capacity, flexural strength, and the critical
stress intensity factor. The results showed that the load-carrying and deflection capacities decrease with an
increase in the notch-to-depth ratios. Furthermore, the flexural strength was ranked as follows: N0 series > N3
series > N2 series > N1 series, whereas ranking of the regarding critical stress intensity factor was opposite:
N1 series > N2 series > N3 series.