A Unified Theoretical Model for the Monotonic and Cyclic Response of FRP Strips Glued to Concrete

The mechanical behavior of the adhesive interface between the fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strip and the concrete substrate often controls the response of FRP-strengthened reinforced concrete (RC) members. Plenty of studies devoted to understanding the mechanical behavior of FRP strips glued to concrete are currently available in the scientific literature. However, they are mainly focused on the response under monotonic actions, which is certainly relevant in a wide class of practical applications. Conversely, few contributions are currently available to better understand the response of FRP-to-concrete interfaces under cyclic actions, such as those deriving from either seismic excitations or traffic loads. This paper presents a unified numerical approach to simulate both monotonic and cyclic behavior of FRP plates glued on quasi-brittle substrates like those made of concrete. Particularly, a damage-based approach is proposed to simulate the fracture behavior of FRP-to-concrete joints under loading/unloading cycling tests. The model is formulated within the general framework of Fracture Mechanics and is based on assuming that fracture at the FRP-to-concrete interface develops in (pure shear) mode II, as widely accepted in similar problems. Two alternative expressions of the bond-slip behavior are herein considered and their preliminary validation is finally proposed. The proposed results highlight the difference between the monotonic and the cyclic response; particularly, they show that the latter is characterized by a significantly lower force and displacement capacity. OPEN ACCESS Polymers 2014, 6 371