Assessing variability and reliability of impact resistance in crumb rubber-modified composites reinforced with carbon textile mesh

Fibre reinforced cementitious composites (FRCC) are widely recognised for their high tensile strength and ductility, making them suitable for structural applications. However, limited research has examined their impact resistance under dynamic loading, particularly regarding post-cracking energy absorption and statistical reliability when incorporating crumb rubber (CR) to produce FRCC containing CR (FRCC-CR) materials. This study addresses these limitations by integrating high-tensile carbon textile reinforcement with CR-modified FRCC and employing statistical analyses to evaluate and enhance its impact resistance performance and reliability. CR was used as a partial sand replacement to reduce brittleness and improve energy absorption, while carbon textile reinforcement was incorporated to enhance post-cracking behaviour and minimise sudden failure. The experimental programme involved drop weight impact testing to assess impact resistance and ductility index, while two-way ANOVA and Weibull distribution analyses were performed to determine statistical significance and reliability. Results showed that impact resistance increased by up to 1024 % with three layers of carbon textile reinforcement in FRCC-CR 15 %, achieving an impact energy absorption of 2728 J. Textile reinforced FRCC–CR consistently exhibited higher ductility indices than composites without textile reinforcement. Statistical analysis confirmed that both CR and textile reinforcement significantly influenced impact resistance, with the textile mesh showing a dominant effect (F-ratio = 138.6). Weibull analysis identified the 10 % CR with three textile layers as the most reliable composition (λ = 2694.87, R² = 0.813). Overall, carbon textile reinforced FRCC with crumb rubber demonstrates excellent toughness, ductility, and reliability, making it suitable for dynamic load-bearing infrastructure.