This study computationally investigates to examine the impacts of repeated loading on L-shaped spandrel beams made of reinforced concrete, which were strengthened by externally bonded carbon fiber reinforced plastic sheets. The object of the research is to evaluate the following three aspects of structural behavior: degradation of reaction forces, evolution of inertia forces, and residual performance. Ayad and Oukaili's experimental impact-loading program, which featured midspan drop-weight loading on RC spandrel beams before and after strengthening, was used to validate a comprehensive three-dimensional finite element model created in ABAQUS. A sequence of 25 impacts before and 25 impacts after CFRP application was simulated to trace impact force, reaction force, inertia force, midspan deflection, and damage progression. Because of cumulative stiffness deterioration, the peak impact force in the unstrengthened beams reduced by 45%, the reaction force decreased by 54.7–57.3%, and the inertia force increased by 237.5–1090%. The peak impact force decline was limited to 31.8% with CFRP strengthening, whereas the reaction force reduction varied from 36.9% to 39%. In comparison to the much greater amplification seen prior to strengthening, the rise in inertia forces was also much reduced, staying between 114.6 and 122.2%. Additionally, there was a 19.2–23.2% decrease in the midspan deflection at the 25th impact. After 25 impacts, CFRP-strengthened beams maintained 68.3–70% of their initial capacity, but unstrengthened beams only maintained 56.2–60.1%, according to the residual performance index (RPI), which showed a notable improvement. Concrete had saturated tensile cracking prior to strengthening, according to damage analysis, but matrix microcracking (HSNMTCRT) without fiber tensile damage (DAMAGEFT) dominated post-retrofit behavior, indicating the efficient confinement and energy-dissipating function of CFRP. These results extend the previous experimental interpretation by quantifying repeated-impact trends in reaction and inertia forces, and show that externally bonded CFRP sheets improve the service-life performance of reinforced concrete ledged beams by enhancing stiffness retention, energy dissipation, inertial stability, and damage control.
Reinforced concrete (RC) beams containing a longitudinal cavity have become an innovative development and advantage for economic purposes of light-weight members without largely affecting their resistance against the applied loads. This type of openings can also be used for maintenance purposes and usage space of communication lines, pipelines, etc. RC beams are primarily loaded in the plane of the members, which are two-dimensional in a plane stress state and the dominant structural behaviours include bending, shear, or combination of both. In the present study, six numerical models of RC beams with and without openings were simulated by using commercial finite element software ANSYS to evaluate the structural behaviours of those b
... Show MoreIn order to study the dynamic response of historical masonry structures, a scaled down brick masonry model constructed in civil engineering department at Baghdad University to simulate a part of a real case study, which is Alkifil historic minaret. Most of the previous researches about masonry structures try to understand the behavior of the masonry under seismic loading by experimental and numerical methods. In this paper, the masonry units (bricks) simulated in scale (S= 1/6) with the exact shape of the prototype bricks. Cementitious tile adhesive was selected to be the mortar for the modeling. The height of the model designed to be 1.5 m with a 0.5 m diameter. Detailed construction steps were presented in this paper. Experts buil
... Show MoreIn this paper, fire resistance and residual capacity tests were carried out on encased pultruded glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) I-beams with high-strength concrete beams. The specimens were loaded concurrently under 25% of the ultimate load and fire exposure (an increase in temperature of 700 °C) for 70 min. Subsequently, the fire-damaged specimens were allowed to cool and then were loaded statically until failure to explore the residual behaviors. The effects of using shear connectors and web stiffeners on the residual behavior were investigated. Finite Element (FE) analysis was developed to simulate the encased pultruded GFRP I-beams under the effect of fire loading. The thermal analyses were performed using the general-pu
... Show MoreConcrete structures is affected by a deleterious reaction, which is known as Alkali Aggregate Reaction (AAR). AAR can be defined as a chemical reaction between the alkali content in the pore water solution of the cement paste and reactive forms of silica hold in the aggregate. This internal reaction produces expansion and cracking in concrete, which can lead to loss of strength and stiffness. Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) is one of the methods used to suppress further AAR expansion and rehabilitate and support damaged concrete structures. In this research, thirty-six cylindrical specimens were fabricated from non-reactive and reactive concrete, which contained fused silica as
Practically, torsion is normally combined with flexure and shear actions. Even though, the behavior of reinforced concrete continuous beams under pure torsion is investigated in this study. It was performed on four RC continuous beams under pure torsion. In order to produce torsional moment on the external supports, an eccentric load was applied at various distances from the longitudinal axis of the RC beams until failure.
Variables considered in this study are absolute vertical displacement of the external supports, torsional moment’s capacity, angle of twist and first cracks occurrences. According to experimental results; when load eccentricity increased from 30cm to 60cm, the absolute vertical displacement i
... Show MoreThis study presents a theoretical investigation of encased composite columns under biaxial loading. The EUROCODE 4 theoretical model for generating the uniaxial interaction diagram was developed and used to meet biaxial requirements. The primary objective was to evaluate how internal steel ratios and configurations and concrete compressive strength influence the axial and biaxial flexural performance of the composite column. Ten models were analyzed, and the results were validated against previous experimental and analytical data. The results indicate that internal reinforcement is the primary driver of stiffness. Changing from an I-section to equivalent reinforcing bars or four steel angles significantly improves the y-axis stiffne
... Show MoreThis manuscript studied the effect of U-CFRP wrapped sheet anchorage on the flexural performance of unbonded post-tensioned PC members subjected to partial strand damage and strengthened using CFRP Near-Surface Mounting techniques. The program includes six girders as a control girder, a girder with strand damage of 14.2%, and four girders strengthened by CFRP laminates using the NSM technique with and without U-CFRP wrapped sheet anchorages. The testing results show that the strand damage of 14.2% has reduced the flexural strength of the girder by 5.71%. The NSM-CFRP laminate has a significant effect on flexural strength by 17.4%. On the other hand, the application of end U-CFRP wrapped sheet anchorages improves flexural
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