Date of Award

Spring 1992

Project Type

Dissertation

Program or Major

Engineering

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

First Advisor

Charles Goodspeed

Abstract

The objective of this dissertation was to evaluate the suitability of Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP) grids for use as a structural reinforcement in concrete structures such as highway bridge decks. The work concentrated on determining the mechanical properties of FRP materials, testing the flexural behavior and servicability of concrete beams and slabs reinforced with FRP grids, and determining splice and development length requirements for FRP grids. Design recommendations concerning failure mode, deflections, anchorage requirements were developed.

The results from the flexural tests on FRP reinforced concrete beams, with reinforcing ratios ranging from 0.3% to 2.2%, showed that the failure mode, measured deflections and ultimate loads were consistent with predictions. Behavior of FRP reinforced concrete beams subjected to cyclical loading was shown to be comparable with the behavior of steel reinforced concrete beams.

The tests on FRP reinforced concrete bridge deck slabs showed that FRP reinforced slabs can be designed to satisfy AASHTO load and servicability requirements.

The splice/development length tests on FRP reinforced concrete beams showed that the formula derived to predict the development length was conservative and consistent with the ACI 318 code.

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