Innovative Hybrid Reinforcement for Flexural Members

The capacity and ductility of RC slabs are affected by the use of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) as their main reinforcement for repair and rehabilitation. The balance between increasing the capacity and reducing the ductility of flexural members reinforced with FRP was always a matter of discussion. In this research, innovative hybrid reinforcement system (HRS) was introduced to provide the required increase in capacity while keeping the ductility within an acceptable range. Ten RC one-way slabs were tested in this investigation. They included a control slab which was reinforced with ordinary steel, while the rest of the slabs were reinforced internally with HRS with nine different profiles. The main variables considered in this study were the type of core or perimeter reinforcement and the number of perimeter reinforcing layers. It was revealed that the use of the innovative HRS resulted in remarkable increases in section ultimate load capacity as well as ductility.