FRP‐Reinforced Wood as Structural Material

Abstract

Advanced forms of wood construction can enable contemporary wood structures such as bridges to be competitive with those constructed from any other conventional material. This paper presents the results of an analytical and experimental investigation of a new form of wood construction involving external bonding of thin fiber‐reinforced plastic (FRP) sheets on the tension zones of wood beams and beam columns using epoxy resins. Here, we examine the effect of external composite reinforcement on the collapse mechanisms and loads, the stiffness and the curvature ductility of hybrid FRP wood members under a combination of bending moments and axial forces. We then give the results of three‐point bending and eccentric compression tests confirming our analysis. The analysis is extended to establish a methodology for the optimum selection of the FRP reinforcement to optimize mechanical performance.