Structural and Luminance Properties of Light Transmitting Concrete

Abstract

Population growth and urbanisation have resulted in exploitation of natural resources, anomalous climate change and environmental pollution. Thus, there is a need for the development of new construction techniques that will not only ensure the preservation of natural resources but at the same time will focus in making a building that is energy efficient and environment friendly. Light transmitting concrete aims to meet such requirement which helps in bringing the minimisation of artificial energy usage by directly allowing the sunlight to project through a concrete material. This paper deals with the study of mechanical and optical properties of light transmitting concrete produced by the inclusion of 2mm diameter plastic optical fiber with four different densities in a concrete cube of dimension 150mmx150mmx150mm.The experimental results show that mechanical strength of concrete mixes containing plastic optical fiber (7x7) increases by 15.057% with light transmission intensity of 69lux greater than conventional concrete at 28 day age. Study also focused on evaluation of Rebound Hammer test results for concrete incorporated with Plastic Optical Fiber. Moreover, the stress-strain relationship showing actual behaviour of fiber concrete under compression is highlight in study. Based on the results it is concluded that the presence of plastic optical fiber in concrete material does not impair its mechanical properties and it represents a new way to harness the sun's energy because of its excellent light transmission capacity.