FE modeling of concerte beams reinforced in flexure using BFRP bars

Abstract

This paper aim to investigate the flexural behavior of concrete beams reinforced longitudinally with Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) bars. Finite element (FE) modeling software, ABAQUS, is used to develop a nonlinear model capable of simulating the behavior of FRP reinforced beams in flexure. To validate the FE model, data extracted from ABAQUS were verified through a comparison with published experimental data. Through a parametric study, this paper aims to study the effect of varying the reinforcement ratio on the flexural behavior of BFRP reinforced beams. The reinforcement ratios studied are 0.003, 0.0047, 0.0068, and 0.0123. The paper also present comparative analysis among various FRP reinforcement bars. BFRP reinforced beam is compared with Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) and Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) reinforced beams with similar reinforcement ratio. A third parametric study was conducted to evaluate the effect of varying the number of reinforcement bars while keeping the axial stiffness constant. The results showed an increasing trend of flexural capacity with the increase in reinforcement ratio. The results also indicated the much larger deflection resistance of the CFRP reinforced beams as compared to BFRP and GFRP beams. Lastly, varying the number of reinforcement bars had no effect on the strength of the beam but rather on the stiffness.