Bending and compression performance of full-scale sandwich panels of hemp fabric reinforced cementitious matrix

Abstract

Sandwich panels composed of fabric-reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) and extruded polystyrene foam (EPS) represent a light and insulating solution compared with other types of enclosure walls, such as steel-reinforced concrete (RC) panels. To improve the sustainability and lightness of FRCM sandwich panels used for building enclosures, this study proposes the use of hemp fabrics in contrast to glass fabrics. Modal analysis and bending and compression tests were conducted on full-scale panels with hemp- and glass-FRCMs. The results obtained from these tests indicate that the use of hemp fabrics with greater equivalent thickness and deformation capacity than glass fabrics make the production of ductile and strength (35 % more than glass-FRCM) sandwich panels possible. Nevertheless, glass-FRCMs allow the production of more stiffened panels. In addition, this study presents a simplified analytical model of sandwich FRCM panels based on the definition of cracked section strength, which is useful in the case of full composite action in the sandwich solution.