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Title: Crack resistance and toughening mechanism of nano-SiO₂ reinforced PVA fibre cement matrix composites in steel bridge engineering

Authors: Pingrang Wang; Yue Wang

Addresses: School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, Zhengzhou, 450046, Henan, China ' School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Zhengzhou University of Aeronautics, Zhengzhou, 450046, Henan, China

Abstract: This paper aims to study the crack resistance and toughening properties of nano silica reinforced polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibre cement-based composites, hoping that these composites can be better applied in steel bridge engineering. This paper designs a cement-based composite material using quartz sand, cement, nano silica, and PVA fibres as raw materials. This paper controls the dosage of nano silica at six levels (0, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2, and 2.5) and analyses the performance of PVA fibre cement-based composites at these levels. The results showed that compared with cement-based composites containing PVC fibres, cement-based composite materials containing 0.5% nano silica increased their compressive strength, flexural strength, initial fracture toughness, and unstable fracture toughness by 10.3%, 13.7%, 8.3%, and 11.8%, respectively. This indicates that the appropriate addition of nano silica in PVA fibre cement-based composite materials can prevent cracking and toughen the material, giving it sufficient strength for steel bridge engineering.

Keywords: cement-based composite; crack resistance and toughening mechanism analysis; nano silica; nanometre materials; steel bridge engineering.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMPT.2026.155362

International Journal of Materials and Product Technology, 2026 Vol.70 No.6, pp.83 - 98

Received: 18 Dec 2025
Accepted: 10 Apr 2026
Published online: 30 Jul 2026 *