Strain Response Characteristics of RC Beams Strengthened with CFRP Sheet Using BOTDR

Abstract

This paper presents the structural behaviors of reinforced concrete (RC) beams that have been strengthened with carbon-fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets experimentally and numerically. Test specimens were subjected to four-point bending, and structural behavior was observed using a strain gauge and a Brillouin optical time domain reflectometer (BOTDR) sensor. Non-linear finite element analysis was conducted to examine the applicability and reliability of numerical models using the commercial finite element code, LS-DYNA. In the results, the de-bonded section between the beam substrate and CFRP sheet affected the initial crack in the structure, while the ultimate load, which is related to structural failure, was unaffected. The predicted results correlated well with the experimental observations in terms of the trend of the load-displacement curve, initial crack load, ultimate load and failure mode. Additionally, it is shown that the de-bonding behaviors in the interface were examined using the strain distributions for the CFRP sheets through the experiment and numerical simulations.