The Effect of CFRP Laminate Length for Strengthening the Tension Zone of the Reinforced Concrete T-Beam

Most of the researches on strengthening so far had been focused on rectangular reinforced concrete (RC) beams. Researches on strengthening of RC T-beams are rather limited. This study focuses on the application of carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) laminate for strengthening the tension zone of RC T-beam constrained by the presence of a stump (representative of a column) and the effect of varying the length of the strengthening laminates. To evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed strengthening method, a total of three RC T-beams were fabricated and tested. The beams were tested using the three point bending test set-up. The results showed that the load carrying capacities of the tension zone strengthened beams were increased by about 50% compared to un-strengthened beams. The length of the CFRP laminate recommended in the Technical Report 55 did not prevent end peeling but it did increase the load bearing capacity of the RC T-beam.