Felipe Núñez

This study investigates the direct tensile mechanical behavior of cement mortar plates reinforced with a galvanized steel mesh and randomly incorporated alkali-resistant glass fibers. An experimental program was executed using direct tensile tests on thin mortar specimens containing fiber volumetric fractions of 0%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10% relative to the cement volume. To rigorously characterize the mechanical response, the study quantified the apparent initial stiffness, 0.2% offset stress, ultimate tensile strength, and post-offset energy absorption capacity. Results indicate that increasing alkali-resistant glass-fiber content systematically modified the global tensile response of the composite system. At 10% glass-fiber content, the mean crosshead-derived apparent initial tensile stiffness was 10.43 times that of the reference group without glass fibers. The characteristic stress determined using the adopted 0.2% offset criterion and the ultimate tensile strength increased by 154.5% and 74.1%, respectively, while the apparent post-offset energy absorption increased by 68.4%. Because strain was derived from crosshead displacement, the apparent stiffness and energy-absorption parameters represent the global specimen–grip–machine response rather than intrinsic material properties. The experimental results exhibited acceptable repeatability, although the apparent tensile stiffness showed greater variability than the strength-related parameters. These findings support the continued development of the investigated composite configuration for thin cementitious elements requiring improved tensile response and damage tolerance.

This study investigates the tensile mechanical behavior of cement mortar plates incorporatingalkali-resistant glass fibers and reinforced with galvanized steel mesh. Anexperimental program was conducted using direct tensile tests on thin mortar specimensextracted from reinforced plates containing glass fiber contents of 0%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and10% relative to the cement volume. The tensile response was evaluated in terms ofapparent initial stiffness, yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and energy absorptioncapacity. The results indicate that glass fiber incorporation significantly enhancesboth the stiffness-related properties and the post-yield behavior of the composite system.Compared with the reference mortar, specimens containing 10% glass fiber exhibited anapparent initial tensile stiffness approximately 10.43 times higher than that of the referencemortar, together with increases of 154.50% in yield strength and 74.10% in ultimatetensile strength.. Furthermore, the energy absorption capacity increased by approximately68.40%, indicating an improvement in toughness and deformation capacity. Inaddition, the relatively low coefficients of variation obtained for most mechanical propertiessuggest good repeatability of the manufacturing and testing procedures. Overall, thefindings demonstrate that the incorporation of alkali-resistant glass fibers is an effectivestrategy for enhancing the tensile performance, toughness, and deformation capacity ofgalvanized steel mesh-reinforced cement mortar plates, making them a promising alternativefor thin cementitious panels and non-structural cladding applications requiringimproved crack control and enhanced energy absorption capacity.

This study investigates the mechanical behavior and energy absorption capacity of a novel metamortar composite, developed by embedding re-entrant auxetic cellular structures into a cementitious mortar matrix. Auxetic materials, which exhibit a negative Poisson’s ratio, offer distinct advantages in impact resistance and stress dissipation. Despite their promising properties, their integration into cement-based systems remains limited. In this work, auxetic cells were fabricated using different 3D printing filaments and combined with mortar to form hybrid composites. The specimens were subjected to quasi-static compression tests to evaluate their Young’s modulus, yield strength, and energy absorption capacity. Results indicate that the auxetic inclusions substantially improved the mechanical performance of the mortar, particularly in the case of PLA-based cells, which achieved the highest values across all tested parameters. The enhancements are attributed to the synergistic deformation mechanisms of the auxetic geometry and the surrounding matrix, promoting efficient load distribution and delayed crack propagation. These findings contribute to the advancement of cementitious metamaterials and establish a foundation for scaling toward metaconcrete systems with improved energy dissipation for use in protective, seismic, and infrastructure applications.