Damage-Based Seismic Retrofitting Approach for Nonductile Reinforced Concrete Structures Using FRP Composite Wraps

Applying similar amount of fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) for all plastic hinge locations in a structure is not an ideal approach as damage occurring at these critical locations may vary considerably. Building owners also always want to keep FRP retrofitting cost and associated interruption to a minimum. In this context, the current paper proposes an FRP retrofitting approach, in which FRP is selectively distributed based on the distribution of seismic damage in structures. The proposed approach, characterized by both quantitative and qualitative criteria, is simple but very effective in simultaneously reducing the seismic damage, amount of FRP to be used, and time of installation. For the considered cases of low- and mid-rise nonductile building structures, the FRP amount reduced approximately by 31% compared to the cases in which FRP was evenly distributed, leading to lower installation cost and less interruption time. Interestingly, although 31% FRP was saved, the damage indices of the FRP retrofitted frames were significantly lower than those in cases of even FRP distribution because FRP effectively served for critical locations. Due to its simplicity and technical/economical effectiveness, the proposed FRP retrofitting approach can be useful for engineering practice.

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