Seismic Response of RC Beam-Column Joints Strengthened with FRP ROPES, Using 3D Finite Element: Verification with Real Scale Tests

Abstract

A 3D-finite element analysis within the numerical program ABAQUS is adopted in order to simulate the seismic behavior of reinforced concrete beam-column joints and beam-column joints strengthened with CFRP ropes. The suitability of the adopted approach is investigated herein. For this purpose, experimental and numerical cyclic tests were performed. The experiments include four reinforced concrete (RC) joints with the same ratio of shear closed-stirrup reinforcement and two different volumetric ratios of longitudinal steel reinforcing bars. Two joints were tested as-built, and the other two were strengthened with CFRP ropes. The ropes were applied as Near Surface Mounted (NSM) reinforcement, forming an X-shape around the joint body and further as flexural reinforcement at the top and bottom of the beam. The purpose of the externally mounted CFRP ropes is to allow the development of higher values of concrete principal stresses inside the joint core, compared with the specimens without ropes, and also to reduce the developing shear deformation in the joint. From the results, it is concluded that X-shaped ropes reduced the shear deformation in the joint body remarkably, especially in high drifts. Further, as a result of the comparisons between the yielded outcome from the attempted nonlinear analysis and the observed response from the tests, it is deduced that the adopted method sufficiently describes the whole behavior of the RC beam-column connections. In particular, comparisons between experimental and numerical results of principal stresses developing in the joint body of all examined specimens, along with similar comparisons of force displacement envelopes and shear deformations of the joint body, confirmed the adequacy of the applied finite element approach for the investigation of the use of CFRP-ropes as an efficient and easy-to-apply strengthening technique. The findings also reveal that the connections that have been strengthened with the FRP ropes demonstrated improved performance, and the crack system preserved its load capacity during the reversal loading tests.