Strengthening RC beams with composite fiber cement plate reinforced by prestressed FRP rods: Experimental and numerical analysis

This paper deals with the development of a new strengthening system for reinforced concrete beams with externally-bonded plate made of composite fiber cement reinforced by rebars made of fiber-reinforced plastic (FRP) [1]. The proposed strengthening material involves the preloading of FRP rod before mortar casting. The paper presents experimental and numerical analysis carried out on many large-scale beams strengthened by well-known reinforcement techniques, such as externally bonded Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) plate and the Near Surface Mounted (NSM) technique, which are compared to the proposed new strengthening material through four-point bending tests. Results are analyzed with regard to the load–displacement curve, bending stiffness, cracking load, yield strength and failure load. The developed numerical model is in agreement with the experimental results. It clearly shows the effects of prestressed FRP rod on cracking mechanisms and internal strength distribution in the analyzed beams.