Dynamic Behavior of Reinforced Concrete Beams Strengthened with Composite Materials

Abstract

The dynamic behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened with externally bonded composite materials is analytically investigated. The analytical model is based on dynamic equilibrium, compatibility of deformations between the structural components (RC beam, adhesive, composite material) and the concept of the high order approach. The equations of motion along with the boundary and continuity conditions are derived using Hamilton’s variational principle and the kinematic relations of small deformations. The mathematical formulation also includes the constitutive laws that are based on beam and lamination theories, and the two-dimensional elasticity representation of the adhesive layer including the closed form solution of its stress and displacement fields. The Newmark time integration method, which is directly applied to the resulting set of coupled partial differential equations, is adopted. This procedure yields a set of ordinary differential equations, which are analytically or numerically solved in every time step. The response of a strengthened beam to different dynamic loads that include impulse load, harmonic load, and seismic base excitation is numerically investigated. The numerical study highlights some of the phenomena associated with the dynamic response and explores the capabilities of the proposed model. The paper closes with a summary and conclusions.