Effects Of Confinement On The Splice Strength Of Bundled Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Bars In Concrete Beams

This study focuses on the effects of concrete cover and transverse reinforcement on the splice strength of bundled glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars. The experimental program comprised eight full-scale beam specimens measuring 5200 x 300 x 450 mm (204.72 x 11.81 x 17.71 in.). Sand-coated GFRP bars of two different diameters (No. 4 [12.7 mm] and No. 5 [15.9 mm]) were used as longitudinal reinforcement A normalweight ready mixed concrete with a compressive strength of approximately 40 MPa (5.8 ksi) was used to cast the test specimens. The variables in the experimental program were the spacing of transverse reinforcement (125 and 250 mm [4.92 and 9.84 in.]) and concrete clear cover (32 and 51 mm [1.25 and 2 in.]). The results show that providing transverse reinforcement along the splice zone can signcantly improve the splice strength of bundled GFRP bars. It was also found that the splice strength of bundled GFRP bars was not dependent on the concrete cover for clear cover-to-bar diameter ratios greater than 2.5. In addition, providing transverse reinforcement was proven to be an effective mean to reduce the maximum and average crack widths of beams reinforced with spliced bundled GFRP bars.