EFFECTIVE STRENGTHENING WITH DUCTILITY: USE OF EXTERNALLY BONDED PLATES OF NON-METALLIC COMPOSITE MATERTALS

摘要

Non-metallic advanced composite materials (ACMs) are being considered as alternatives to replace conventional materials like steel. The prospects to use advanced composites plates, in lieu of steel, to be bonded externally to upgrade or retrofit a reinforced concrete (RC) beam element, depends on how effectively a designer can accommodate and exploit the material in conjunction with the existing structural element without sacrificing any of its desirable properties. Compromise on ductility at failure is a major concern which has to be carefully thought about during design stage when ACMs are to be considered as plate material. Research to date on this is far from conclusive. This paper aims to draw attention to this widely recognized phenomenon of "lack of ductility" and also illustrates some initial results from ongoing research where glass fibre reinforced plastics (GFRP) is the plate material. The experimental results reported here indicate that it's possible to obtain a ductile failure from a GFRP plate bonded RC beam.