Fatigue of Diagonally Cracked RC Girders Repaired with CFRP

Abstract

Fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) are becoming more widely used for repair and strengthening of conventionally reinforced concrete (RC) bridge members. Once repaired, the member may be exposed to millions of load cycles during its service life. The anticipated life of FRP repairs for shear strengthening of bridge members under repeated service loads is uncertain. Field and laboratory tests of FRP-repaired RC deck girders were performed to evaluate high-cycle fatigue behavior. An in-service 1950s vintage RC deck-girder bridge repaired with externally bonded carbon fiber laminates for shear strengthening was inspected and instrumented, and FRP strain data were collected under ambient traffic conditions. In addition, three full-size girder specimens repaired with bonded carbon fiber laminate for shear strengthening were tested in the laboratory under repeated loads and compared with two unfatigued specimens. Results indicated relatively small in situ FRP strains, laboratory fatigue loading produced localized debonding along the FRP termination locations at the stem-deck interface, and the fatigue loading did not significantly alter the ultimate shear capacity of the specimens.