EXPERIMENTAL STUDY ON THE FLEXURAL BEHAVIOR OF TRC-STRENGTHENED REINFORCED CONCRETE BEAMS

Abstract

This article presents the experimental results on the flexural behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) beams strengthened with textile-reinforced concrete (TRC). Four RC beams were made of B22.5 grade concrete, and the TRC strengthening layer utilized Sigratex Grid 350 textile, with fine-grained concrete Sikagrout 214-11 serving as the binder. The reinforcement layer was applied using a grooving technique. The four-point bending test was conducted to evaluate the improvements in load-bearing capacity and deformation of the beams after strengthening. The results indicated that the strengthened beams exhibited a 36.2% higher load-bearing capacity and a 13.5% increase in mid-span deflection compared to un-strengthened beams. However, the occurrence of debonding in the reinforcing layer reduced the strengthening effectiveness. To ensure the efficiency of flexural strengthening with TRC, attention should be given to the adhesion of the fine-grained concrete layer and additional reinforcement of the compression zone. These findings provide a basis for the practical application of TRC in enhancing RC structures, ensuring both safety and performance.