A new pull-out test to study the bond behavior of fiber reinforced cementitious composites

Fiber reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) composites are gaining increasing popularity in the civil engineering community. FRCM composites are comprised of high-strength fiber textiles embedded within inorganic matrices that are responsible for the stress-transfer mechanism between the composite and the substrate. Failure of FRCM composites including one layer of textile is generally reported to be debonding of the fibers from the embedding matrix. Therefore, the bond behavior of the matrix-fiber interface is of critical importance for these types of composites. This paper presents the results of an experimental campaign carried out to investigate the bond behavior of an FRCM composite comprising PBO fibers. Specimens were tested using a newly-developed pull-out test set-up. The results obtained are compared with those obtained by different authors on single-lap direct-shear tests with the same FRCM composite.