Dynamic response of reinforced concrete beams subjected to low velocity impact loads using nonlinear finite element analysis

Abstract

The development of a nonlinear finite element method (FEM) for examining how reinforced concrete (RC) beams react to dynamic forces under the action of low-velocity impacting loads is presented in this article. The model was employed to analyze the stress distributions along with the time histories of impacting load and beam deflection, which were presented graphically. Comparisons with experimental data from previously conducted studies have been performed to verify the precision of the studied model. The findings demonstrated that the developed model was acceptable. Furthermore, the study performed a detailed parametric analysis, focusing on various factors such as replacing conventional steel bars with FRP bars, increasing concrete compressive strength, changing the impact location, using different diameters of reinforcing bars, and changing the depth of the concrete beam. According to the findings, using FRP bars resulted in 36% less peak load due to the uplift pressure caused by the FRP bars' high strength, while the maximum observed deflection of the beam reinforced with FRP bars decreased by approximately 9%. When the position of the impacting force was applied at one-third of the span of the beam, deflection was decreased by 12% when compared to the RC beam has been impacted at its midspan. In addition, the depth of the beams had a significant impact on the impacting load. These presented findings of the study may contribute to a better understanding of how a structure made of concrete responds to impacting loading.