Experimetal study on the FRP-concrete bond behavior under repeated loadings

In this study, the effects of repeated loads on the FRP-concrete bond strength were investigated experimentally by direct pull out tests according to CSA S806-02. A conventional reinforcing steel bar and two types of glass-fiber-reinforced plastic (GFRP) bars were embedded in concrete and tested under four different loading patterns. The bond strength–slip curves of the bars were obtained and analyzed. The results showed that the maximum bond strengths under the repeated loads differed from those obtained under monotonic ones. In addition, noticeable differences in degradation of the bond strength with respect to the magnitude of slip were observed between the different bar types tested. On the basis of an image analysis of failure surfaces, they were attributed to the different bond failure mechanisms associated with the steel and GFRP bars.