Flexural behaviour of GFRP-encased concrete panels

Abstract

A combined experimental, analytical and numerical study of glass fibre-reinforced polymer (GFRP)-encased concrete panels is conducted to evaluate their flexural behaviour in both longitudinal and transverse directions; the results for conventional reinforced concrete (RC) panels with the same dimensions are also presented for the sake of comparison. The experimental results indicate that the GFRP-encased concrete panels provide a significant enhancement in load-carrying capacity, as compared with conventional RC panels. An analytical model is also proposed to predict the flexural behaviour of GFRP-encased concrete panels. The moment–curvature relationship is first numerically established by application of strain compatibility and force equilibrium equations, and the deflection is then obtained by the curvature–area method. Numerical finite-element analysis (FEA) is then performed to simulate flexural behaviour of GFRP-encased concrete panels under four-point bend loading. Finally, the experimental results are compared with those of the proposed analytical models and FEA, and good agreements are obtained in the longitudinal direction. The results in the transverse direction are also discussed. The proposed hybrid GFRP-encased concrete panels demonstrate their effectiveness and potential as floors and walls in buildings and decks in bridges.