Research / Graduation projectNAJRAN UNIVERSITY / 2026

Ultra-High-Performance Concrete Reinforced with Date Palm Fibers

Investigating how fibre treatment and fibre content affect bond and mechanical performance.

Graduation project, Bachelor of Civil Engineering

Specimen, illustrative

Method

Schematic, not to scale
  1. Prepare fibres
  2. Cast specimens
  3. Cure, then test
  4. Compare

  1. Pull-out

  2. Compressive strength

  3. Flexural strength

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Objective

Investigate whether date palm fibres, a local agricultural by-product, can reinforce ultra-high-performance concrete, and how fibre treatment and fibre content affect bond behaviour and mechanical performance.

Order of work

  1. Fibre preparation in treated and untreated conditions.
  2. UHPC specimens cast with the fibre conditions and percentages under study.
  3. Curing, then pull-out, compressive and flexural testing.
  4. Comparison of the fibre conditions and contents against each other.

Tests

  • Pull-out. Bond behaviour between the fibres and the UHPC matrix.
  • Compressive strength. Effect of fibre condition and content on the strength of the matrix.
  • Flexural strength. Flexural strength of the fibre-reinforced UHPC across fibre conditions and contents.

Variables

Fibre contentVariable percentages

Fibre treatment

Treated

Untreated

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Fibre conditions

  • Treated fibres. Fibres treated before mixing, to study the effect of treatment on bond with the UHPC matrix.
  • Untreated fibres. Fibres used in their natural condition as the comparison case.
  • Variable percentages. Different fibre contents cast and tested to compare performance across dosages.

Variables under study

  • Fibre treatment (treated / untreated)
  • Fibre content (variable percentages)

Materials

  • Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) matrix
  • Date palm fibres, treated
  • Date palm fibres, untreated

Results

Results pending

Relevance

Testing a local agricultural by-product as reinforcement.

  • Sustainable construction materials
  • Natural-fibre reinforcement
  • Concrete performance
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Sustainable construction materials

Date palm fibres are abundant in Saudi Arabia; using them in concrete turns an agricultural by-product into reinforcement.

Natural-fibre reinforcement

Natural fibres can improve post-cracking behaviour; their bond with a dense UHPC matrix is the open question.

Concrete performance

The tests connect a material-science question (bond) to structural properties (compressive and flexural strength).

From the laboratory to the site.

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