A Study on Strengthening RC Structural Elements with Fibers Based Polymers

The structural damage and destruction after the devastating earthquakes bring the importance of the seismic performance of existing structures and the precautions to be taken regarding such structures to the agenda. The different levels of damage and destruction that occurred in reinforced-concrete (RC) structures after the earthquakes reveal that the earthquake performances of these structures are not at a sufficient level. Different reinforcement techniques and materials can be used to increase the seismic performance of existing structures compared to the predicted seismic performance. Insufficient transverse reinforcement used to resist the shear force in RC columns and beams and low concrete strength play a critical role in the damage in these elements. New technologies and advanced materials can be used to increase the earthquake performances of such structural elements. Within the scope of this study, firstly, element-based shear force capacities were obtained for an RC beam and column using steel and aramid fiber materials. In addition, in a selected sample RC structure, steel and aramid fiber was applied only to the columns and the results were compared. The results obtained reveal that these fibers significantly increase the shear force capacity.