Dynamic compressive behaviour of coconut fibre-reinforced concrete composite

Coconut fibre-reinforced concrete (CFRC) is widely used in the construction of house walls, especially in rural areas, but its impact resistance has rarely been studied. This paper investigates the dynamic compressive behaviour of CFRC by conducting high-speed servo-hydraulic tests under different strain rates ranging from 0·2 to 30 s⁻¹. To study the strain rate effects on compressive strength, failure pattern, failure processes and energy absorption, CFRC cylindrical specimens with different coconut fibre contents – that is, 1, 3 and 5% of cement mass – were prepared and tested. The results showed that compressive strength increased with the strain rate, but decreased when the coconut fibre volume exceeded 3%. This paper discusses the relationship between the fibre-content-dependent dynamic increase factor and the strain rate for CFRC composites. In addition, it studies the failure process of CFRC via an analysis of the effect of the fibre content. The result of this research should be helpful in designing high-speed, impact-resistant, natural fibre-reinforced composites.