Mechanical Behaviors of High Performance Concrete Beams Prestressed with CFRP Strands

Abstract

The merits of high performance concrete (HPC) and fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) could be combined for using in the concrete structures to improve the structural mechanical behavior. Six beams cast with HPC and prestressed with Carbon FRP (CFRP) strands were tested and discussed in this paper. Test variables included partial prestressing ratio (PPR) of CFRP strands and material of reinforcements (steel and Glass FRP). Test results indicated that all the beams failed in two modes, i.e., compression failure mode and tension failure mode. The ultimate deflection of all the beams reached 1/70-1/41 of the spans and the ductility coefficients of the steel reinforced beams were higher than 3.5 (except the one with the highest steel reinforcement ratio), indicating good deformability and ductility. An increase in partial prestressing ratio (PPR) had a positive effect on ductility. The ductility of Glass FRP reinforced beam was much lower than that of steel reinforced beams while the deformability was quite similar.