Abstract: To explore the impact of cyclic compression on fatigue damage in concrete with varying iron tailings sand content, we conducted mixture performance assessments and variable-amplitude cyclic compression tests on iron tailings sand concrete. Our findings reveal that the water absorption of iron tailings sand concrete surpasses that of ordinary concrete, escalating with dosage increments. Below a 40% iron tailings sand content, concrete exhibits enhanced fluidity and maintains a pumpable state in terms of pressure bleeding rate. The stress-strain curve of iron tailings sand concrete during cyclic compression transitions from dense to sparse, with deformation levels lower than those of ordinary concrete. Near failure, the loading deformation modulus experiences a sudden decline. Total input energy and elastic strain energy exhibit accelerated growth rates with increasing cyclic compression times, while dissipation energy shows a gradual increase followed by a rapid surge.

Key words: iron tailings sand, concrete, mixture performance, variable-amplitude cyclic compression