Study On Strengthening Of RC Beams With Near Surface Mounted FRP Rods

In the recent years, the new technique of strengthening of RC structure with Near Surface Mounted FRP rods has appeared in the laboratory studies and practical engineering application abroad. Compared to the externally bonded FRP composites which are already applied commonly, advantages of using NSM FRP rods are the possibility of anchoring the rods into adjacent members, and minimal installation time. Furthermore, this technique becomes particularly attractive for flexural strengthening in the negative moment regions of slabs and decks, where external reinforcement would be subjected to mechanical and environmental damage and would require protective cover which could interfere with the presence of floor finishes. This new technique has some application value of civil engineering and it can hardly be seen in the domestic reports. So this program test the RC beams with Near Surface Mounted AFRP rods to do some researching work for this area.Based on testing of the eleven beams, we investigated the failure mode and failure criterion, as well as the strength methods and deflections of the strengthened flexural and shear RC beams with NSM AFRP rods, by using the parameters such as FRP embedment lengths, amounts and strengthening pattern. The testing results showed that the NSM method is a promising technique to enhance the flexural and shear capacity of RC beams. A remarkable increase in stiffness and cracking resistance was also obtained.This essay also summarizes the practice and research advance abroad, emphasizing on the failure modes and strength methods of the strengthened flexural RC beams. Otherwise, we compared the testing results with the theories. This would lead to useful conclusions for practical engineering applications.