Evaluation of Mechanical Properties and Chemical Composition of Some Selected Steel Reinforcements Used in Nigeria

Mechanical properties and chemical composition of some selected steel reinforcement bars used for construction works in Nigeria were investigated. Six nominal sizes of bars from four selected brands, including: Real steel reinforcing pty Limited, code name Red; Phoenix steel mills, code name White; Pulkit alloy and steel limited, code name Blue; and African foundries limited, code name Black were evaluated. The tensile test was carried out at the mechanical engineering department, University of Ilorin using Universal Testing Machine (UTM) while the chemical compositions of the steel samples were analyzed using optical emission spectrometer at the laboratory of African foundries limited, Ikorodu Lagos State. The results obtained were compared with BS 449:2005 +A3:2016 standard provision. The outcome of the study showed that 70.8 % of the tested steel bars failed the characteristic tensile strength test, though with a very good percentage elongation satisfying the required specification. Chemical composition tests revealed that most of the failed samples contained low carbon content or excess phosphorus composition plus other impurities.