Review on the design and application of concrete canvas reinforced with spacer fabric

Abstract

Concrete canvas reinforced with spacer fabric has increasingly gained popularity due to its lightweight, great flexibility, high strength and low contamination compared to ordinary concrete. In order to fully explore the structure and performance of this novel composite, this review illustrates how to design high-performance concrete canvas and presents a summary of recent application status of it. Firstly, the structure and properties of knitted and woven spacer fabric and concrete material that comprise concrete canvas is introduced. Secondly, internal and external mechanisms affecting the properties of concrete canvas have been described. To illustrate how to evaluate and test the mechanical behavior of concrete canvas, typical mechanical experiments such as tensile and flexural experiment and failure mechanisms are explained. In terms of the characteristics of concrete canvas, the present article reviews current applications of it in disaster relief tent, slope protection, ditch lining and furniture design areas. Nevertheless, its practical applications are still in the preliminary stage, it is of great necessity to expand its application from the point of view of replacing traditional materials, changing structural design, external reinforcement and perfecting performance evaluation system.