Effect of interfacial strength on the flexural behavior of glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) reinforced concrete beam

Abstract

The reinforcement/matrix interfacial strength has been considered as the key factor when glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) bar is mixed with concrete. In this paper, based on micromechanics, four-point bending numerical models with and without glass fiber of different interfacial strength have been set up to simulate the damage process of GFRP reinforced concrete beam. The results show that the higher the interfacial strength is, the higher the ultimate bearing capacity of beams, and the less the opening width and height of cracks will be reached. Furthermore, mixing of glass fibers has less influence on the damage process when the interfacial strength is weak, however, it can help to improve the ultimate bearing capacity of the beams, retard the expansion of cracks and improve the toughness when the interfacial strength is high.

Keywords

interfacial strength / GFRP / damage process / debonding / numerical simulation

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