FRP strengthening of shear walls with openings

Abstract

Concrete shear walls are one of the main lateral resisting members in buildings. The functional requirements like architectural and even mechanical requirements entail that openings have to be installed in structural walls as well as floors. In this study, nonlinear static analysis was utilized to study the effects of fiber reinforced plastic (FRP) on the ultimate load capacity of concrete shear walls with openings using the finite element analysis software ABAQUS. In order to verify the accuracy of the numerical model, a comparison was done between the results of experimental and numerical analysis of a concrete shear wall. Subsequent to verification of the Finite Element Model (FEM), the effects of creating cut-off openings as well as strengthening effects of applying FRP have been studied. Whereas the numerical results show good correlation between the FEM and the experimental results of reinforced concrete (RC) shear walls, the numerical analysis represents a remarkable improvement in ultimate lateral load capacity of shear wall with opening strengthened using fiber reinforced plastic. The results obtained are presented in relative diagrams and tables.