Enhancing Flexural Strength of Concrete Incorporating Natural and Recycled Brick Aggregates with Low-Cost Glass and Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer
Abstract
This study presents a comprehensive experimental investigation aimed at enhancing the flexural strength of plain concrete incorporating natural and recycled brick aggregates. Low-cost glass fiber-reinforced polymer (LoC-GFRP) sheets were employed for this purpose. An extensive experimental program involving 56 beams explored parameters such as compressive strength, type of confinement, presence of anchors, resin type, and quantity of confinement. Through a detailed analysis of 56 beams, several key findings emerged: (1) Anchorage systems were crucial for LoC-GFRP confined beams, with epoxy-based anchors proving insufficient to prevent premature debonding, indicating the need for further anchor optimization; (2) Lower plain concrete strength demonstrated a direct correlation with increased flexural strength improvement, notably achieving up to 326.32% enhancement with a 3-layer LoC-GFRP confinement; (3) Increasing the number of LoC-GFRP layers led to a consistent improvement in flexural strength for all coarse aggregate types, suggesting its efficacy in structural enhancement; (4) While carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) outperformed LoC-GFRP in flexural strength improvement, the latter demonstrated superior cost efficiency (i.e., CFRP priced at 33% higher than LoC-GFRP) despite differences ranging from 19.18% to 121.23%; (5) The comparison of resin types highlighted the trade-offs between cost and performance, with epoxy-based resin showing delayed debonding and superior flexural strength improvements compared to polyester-based resin, despite the significant cost reduction potential of the latter (up to 93%).