Author(s)

A. Arul Gnanapragasam¹, G. Chitra², S. Robert Ravi^1*

¹Department of Civil Engineering, SSM Institute of Engineering and Technology, Dindigul, India.
²Department of Civil Engineering, Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, India.

Beam-Column joints are critical zones in reinforced concrete structures which are most vulnerable to earthquake forces. Hence strengthening beam-column joint is vital to save the structure and its inhabitants in case of seismic forces. Numerous retrofitting works using fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are being undertaken worldwide. This work aims to investigate the effectiveness of strengthening beam-column joints using natural and artificial fibres. In this study, basalt (natural fibres) as monolithic composite (BFRP) and as hybrid composite along with glass (artificial fibres) were used for strengthening of beam-column joints. Totally six specimens were prepared and tested under monotonic loading. Specimen details used were: two control specimen, two specimens for monolithic wrapping and remaining two specimens for hybrid wrapping. The test results were compared with control and rehabilitated specimens. The performance of the treated joints was studied using the following parameters: initial and ultimate cracking loads, energy absorption, deflection ductility and stiffness at ultimate. From the test results, it was found that the hybrid combination of Basalt and Glass FRPs were found to be more effective in the treatment of beam-column joints. The strong column weak beam concept was achieved by failure in beam portion which helped in preventing the catastrophic failure of the entire structure.

FRP, Reinforced Concrete, Beam-Column Joints, Glass Fibre Reinforced Polymer, Basalt Fibre Reinforced Polymer

Gnanapragasam, A. , Chitra, G. and Ravi, S. (2016) Study on Strengthening of RC Beam Column Joint Using Hybrid FRP Composites. Circuits and Systems, 7, 2846-2856. doi: 10.4236/cs.2016.710243.