Analysis of Performance of Glass Fibre Reinforced Polymer Wrapped Columns - A Parametric Study

摘要

Reinforced concrete columns can be strengthened by enlargement of the column section using concrete jacketing or provision of lateral confinement to the concrete using steel or a fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) jacketing. FRP confinement technique is very effective for circular columns, but its effectiveness is much reduced for rectangular columns. Effectiveness of FRP confinement for a rectangular column can be increased by transforming the column section into an elliptical section. In this work the effect of some important design parameters such as aspect ratio, grade of concrete, number of wraps, and eccentricity of elliptical shape on the performance measures such as axial strength, axial deformation, and cost is studied through experimental analysis. The experimental plan is designed based on central composite design (CCD) method of response surface methodology (RSM). The mathematical relation between the variables and performance measures is then determined using second order response surface methodology. This paper also provides methodology for selection of optimal combinations of the parameters so as to maximise the performance of the column section in terms of strength, deflection, and cost. The results of the proposed mathematical relations and optimization are verified experimentally and numerically.