Characterization of Bond-Loss Failures in Pretensioned Concrete Girders

Abstract

Failures of strand–concrete bonds have been widely observed in load tests of precast-pretensioned concrete I girders. Through a review of 22 test programs, 15 terminologies were identified to describe failures associated with bond loss. In many cases, previous researchers used different terms to describe the same failure behavior. In response to the wide-ranging and sometimes inconsistent terminologies used in the literature, this technical note makes two contributions. First, the different types of failure that involve strand–concrete bond loss are characterized, and a consistent labeling scheme is proposed. The 15 labels given in the referenced test programs are condensed into four primary behaviors. Second, a flowchart is presented for assisting future researchers in characterizing and labeling bond-loss failures. Decision points in the flowchart are based on a synthesis of the reviewed test programs, which included 120 unique load tests having some type of bond-loss failure.