The Influence of the Wood Essence of Beams Reinforced with Polymer Composite Materials on the Mechanical Properties

Wooden resistance elements, such as beams and pillars, are often used in construction. They must be designed and made so as to withstand the loads to which they are subjected during use. The predominant stress of the beams is bending, the maximum values of normal stresses due to the loads that solicitate the beams being important to know for ensuring its bearing capacity. In this paper an experimental study is presented regarding the resistance elements of the beams type. The beams are made of two types of wood, namely beech wood and poplar wood, having a rectangular section. These beams were reinforced with composite materials based on carbon fiber such as plates and fabric that were applied to the beams with the help of an epoxy resin, in order to study their behavior when subjected to bending stress. Bending tests were made until the beams were damaged, measuring, in this sense, the applied forces and the related displacements. The strength of wooden beams reinforced with composite materials was compared with the strength of wooden beams without the addition of composite material, thus establishing which is the better constructive reinforcement solution, for the two essences of wood, to ensure safety in operation, in construction field.