This study focused on the engineering properties of alkali‐activated slag (AAS) pastes prepared by mixing an activator consisting of sodium silicate and sodium hydroxide at room temperature. The water‐to‐slag ratio of AAS paste was kept constant at 0.35 by mass. AAS pastes were prepared using the activator with five different silicate moduli of 1, 1.2, 1.4, 1.6, and 1.8 and three different Na₂O contents of 6%, 8%, and 10%. The results showed that both the silicate moduli and Na₂O contents had significant effects on the engineering properties of AAS pastes. All the AAS pastes exhibited properties such as fast setting, good workability, and high early compressive strength. The final setting time varied from 9 to 36 min, and the fluidity was in the range of 147–226 mm. The 1 d compressive strength of all the AAS pastes, which could be easily achieved, had values above 55 MPa, whereas the highest strength obtained was 102 MPa with the silicate modulus of 1 and Na₂O content of 8% at room temperature. The drying shrinkage increased as the silicate modulus increased. Furthermore, the hydration products and microstructures of AAS pastes were explained according to the microanalysis methods.

This work aims to investigate the seismic behavior and shear bearing capacity of Ultra-High Performance, Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (UHPFRC) beam-column joints. Quasi-static tests were conducted on five exterior and four interior reinforced UHPFRC beam-column joints; the behavior of specimens was examined in terms of failure processes, shear deformation angle, load transfer, and loadbearing capacity. The influences of the joint types, axial compression load level, and stirrup ratio in joint cores on the failure modes and shear carrying capacity of joints were analyzed. The shear resistance mechanism of a reinforced UHPFRC beam-column joint consists of the diagonal strut and truss mechanisms. The role of steel fiber through cracks is similar to reinforcement bars in the truss mechanism; based on these mechanisms and the test results, a formula was proposed to predict the shear carrying capacity of reinforced UHPFRC joints. The formula can reflect the effects of axial compression load level, steel fiber content, and stirrup ratio in the joint core on the shear carrying capacity of the beam-column joint, which can be used not only for UHPFRC beam-column joint design, but also steel fiber high-strength concrete joints.