Perforated FRP ribs for shear connecting of FRP-concrete hybrid beams/decks

Abstract

The primary consideration of FRP-concrete hybrid beams/decks is to handle the connection for FRP girder and concrete slab. This paper presents the results of push-out tests developed to characterize the shear behavior of perforated FRP rib (PFR) as a solution for shear connection of FRP-concrete hybrid beam. Tests reveal that PFRs provide two advantages when compared with traditional steel bolts, related to at least 2.5 times the shear capacity and approximately 10 times the slip modulus. Theoretical analysis indicated that: (i) PFRs are capable of meeting the shear capacity requirement of load transferring between FRP and concrete; (ii) the slip modulus of PFR increases proportionally with the area of the concrete wedge and second orderly with the thickness of the perforated plate; (iii) shear failure occurs in the perforated FRP plate prior to the failure of the concrete wedge, which governs the design of PFR and is the main difference from PBL (perfobond leist) in steel–concrete hybrid beams. Finally, calculation equations for shear capacity and slip modulus of PFR are developed to facilitate the design.