Experimental research of electrical conductivity and pressure-sensitivity of carbon fiber reinforced cement

The influences of dispersing agent, water cement ratio and antifoaming agent on the flow ability and the electrical resistance of carbon fiber reinforced cement (CFRC) were studied by orthogonal test. The pressure-sensitivity of CFRC mixed with 6 mm carbon fiber and the influence of carbon fiber length on the conductance of CFRC were discussed. The results show that electrical conductance of CFRC depends on the mixing proportion of CFRC because it has an important effect on the dispersion of cement particles and fiber. The more and longer the fibers are the more obvious improvement to electrical conductance they make. For 6 mm carbon fiber, the percent of vadose critical volume of cement is 0.34%, and 0.66% for 3 mm carbon fiber. During once loading, the electrical resistance of CFRC mixed with 0.18% to 0.5% carbon fiber possesses 17% to 35% linear reduction with the higher changing ratio in the vadose zone than in the over-vadose zone.