Education

Student Performs Flexural Strength Testing on Octaform™ Components

Strength testing on beams created from Octaform™ components produces significant results that warrant further testing of the Octaform System.

Andi Bogdanovich EIT, from the University of Manitoba completed flexural strength testing on beams created from Octaform™ components. The result was, concrete beams incased in PVC showed a greater degree of flexural strength than beams built from bare concrete.

Test results

Download the test results in PDF format (907 KB)

Concrete Beam Designs

The following drawings and pictures illustrate the dimenions and designs of test samples:

Trial Test Set-up

Tests were done to:

1. Determine the method of testing required to ensure flexural loading.
2. Through this Experimental Program - testing method and dimensions of the apparatus was derived.

Test Set-up

MTS = the location of force to ensure flexural loading.

Strain gauges are shown below on the middle of the beam. Loads are recorded and then used for further analysis:

Load Deflection Behavior of Concrete Beam Reinforced with Steel

Test of bare concrete

• Rebar was sized to ensure testing apparatus was capable of failing the specimen.
• 6.55mm bar was used in all bare concrete and PVC beam samples.

Load Deflection Behavior of Concrete Beam Reinforced with Steel and Covered with PVC Panels

• Average 4.2kN (944 (lbs force)).
• PVC Encapsulated Beams - maintains load resistance after concrete and rebar has failed.

Comparison Between Steel Reinforced Concrete Beam and Steel Reinforced Concrete Beam Covered with PVC Panels

• Blue line: Drop from 2.4 to 1.7 kN represents concrete failure. The concrete broke at 2.4 kN and continued to lose strength from that point on.
• Red line: First break at 3.5 kN represents concrete failure. Second break at 3.9 kN and 29 mm deflection represents rebar failure. Octaform™ maintained a 2.4 kN strength to the capacity of the test apparatus.
• PVC encapsulated concrete maintained a load of 2.4 kN (539 lb force).

Load Deflection Behavior of Concrete Beam Reinforced with Steel and Covered with PVC Panels

Results of PVC encapsulated concrete beams:

• Octaform™ has internal connectors and braces which would add to the load carrying capacity.
• Red line: This sample was stripped of PVC and in that process a fracture occurred. Not comparable to Specimen #1 and #2.

Illustration of deflection of the samples below. Note the PVC samples reached maximum deflection of the testing equipment without breaking of the beam (ie. the PVC held the beam together even after the concrete and rebar failed).

Maximum deflection, with concrete still encased:

Download the test results in PDF format (907 KB)