STRENGTHENING OF THIN FLEXURAL MEMBERS USING STRIPS EXTRACTED FROM USED TIRES

Present study investigates the ability of using the damaged tires in the field of structural engineering. The proposed reinforcement material in this study represents an innovative approach to reuse strips extracted from used tires to increase the ultimate flexural capacity of thin flexural members, include thin timber beams and steel plates, satisfying clean environment and economic considerations by consuming the waste materials in the structural field. Results showed that the proposed reinforcement increases the ultimate flexural load value of the thin timber beam specimens in the range of 24.113 % to 30.809 % respectively based on results obtained experimentally and numerically by ANSYS software compared to specimens without reinforcement. Similarly, the ultimate flexural load was increased in the range of 83.95% to 101.7% respectively based on the results obtained numerically and experimentally for the rib type steel plates specimens. Also, deflection has been reduced due to the proposed reinforcement method.