Abstract:

Due to the restraint from the components aside concrete slabs,arching action occurs in these slabs. In order to reveal the influences of glass fibre reinforced polymer ( GFRP) bars on the concrete slabs,ten slabs were loaded until failure. The results show that the arching action gradually become significant after the occurrence of cracking in the slabs,and that,the role of GFRP bars in the tensile area is like that of the springs connecting with
two arch legs,that is,with the increase of the stiffness of the equivalent springs for reinforcement,the arching action weakens,otherwise the arching action is enhanced. Furthermore,it is found that too low reinforcement percentage in the slabs or locating reinforcement at the mid-depth of the slabs is unprofitable to the control of both the deflection and the cracking width,while appropriate reinforcement percentage makes the GFPR bars and the arching action jointly play their roles,which can narrow the gap in the serviceability between the slab with an appropriate reinforcement percentage and that with a higher reinforcement percentage,and that the cracking distribution and failure mode of the slab depend on its reinforcement configuration, while the reinforcement configuration has a relatively slight influence on the ultimate bearing capacity. In addition,the role of GFRP bars is quantified, and the results obtained through the design method considering the arching action are more accordant with the experimental results than the calculated values based on current design standards are.

Key words: glass fiber reinforced polymer bar, arching action, concrete slabs, deflection, cracking, bearing capacity