A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Engineering, School of Engineering and Technology

Thesis (M.Eng.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2004

The structural behavior of reinforced concrete beam and slab system using Ferrocement jacketing are investigated. Ten specimens which included two control specimens, two specimens without ferrocement jacketing and six strengthened specimens are cast and tested for their structural performance. This study proposed three patterns of applying ferrocement jacketing on the beam and slab systems namely the single form layer, modified single form layer and double form layers. The first crack loads, ultimate loads, toughness and ductility of the composites are experimentally obtained and compared with the behavior of beam and slab systems without ferrocement jacketing. The experimental results are compared with predicted values and a cost analysis is conducted. Test results showed that strengthening of the beam and slab systems by using ferrocement jacketing increased the first crack and ultimate loads, modulus of resilience, and toughness index of the composite system. The double form layer ferrocement jacketing system resulted in a significant increase in the load carrying capacity of the composite. The experimental results with regard to the first crack and ultimate loads of the composite system were found to be significantly higher than the theoretical predicted values. The cost of the strengthening of the beam and slab systems using the single form layer, modified single form layer, and double form layers of ferrocement jacketing were 134, 210 and 151 Bath per ton of ultimate load respectively. It is recommended that the strengthening the beam and slab system using double form layers of ferrocement jacketing be adopted in practice due to the superior behavior of the composite.