Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis for Concrete Deep Beam Reinforced with GFRP Bars

Abstract

This work investigates the behavior of concrete deep beams reinforced with GFRP bars by conducting an experimental test on a half-scale GFRP deep beam and evaluating the findings by ANSYS software. Also, ANSYS was used to perform nonlinear finite element analysis NLFEA on five specimens with different reinforcement ratios of GFRP bars (0.15%, 0.41%, 0.53%, 0.67%, and 0.79%) to examine the influence of the GFRP reinforcement ratio on the behavior of deep beams. The outcomes of the experiment were sufficiently reflected in the analysis. The program's viability was confirmed by comparing it to accessible experimental data, and the agreement was found to be acceptable. Throughout the loading stages, the NLFEA produced a reasonable estimate of the center deflection for the test specimen. It was established that raising the specimen's reinforcement ratio led to an increase in beam capacity by (10 %, 18%, 31% and 47%) for reinforcement ratios (0.41%, 0.53%, 0.67% and 0.79%) and also the ultimate stiffness increased by (6%, 7%, 29%, and 44%) compared to specimen B1. Also found that the energy absorption enhanced by (23 %, 38 %, 106 %, and 152 %), on the opposite, this increase causes the specimen's deflection to decrease by (11 %, 17%, 52%, and 66%) by comparing to specimen B1. From the outputs results, it was found that the code provision was more conservative than the analytical model. For future work, Significant and cost-effective improvements to the manufacture of GFRP bars from locally sourced raw materials. Also, Extensive experimental work to investigate the long-term behavior of GFRP-reinforced concrete beams in harsh situations. The performance of GFRP reinforced specimens subjected to shear, fatigue, and cyclic stresses in service must be evaluated.