Title:
Flexural Behavior of Preloaded RC Beams Strengthened with Prestressed CTRC Plates (Prepublished)
Author(s):
Shujun Zhou, Yunxing Du, Yanqiu Li, Ziwei Li, Xionggang Shi
Publication:
Structural Journal
Volume:
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
Keywords:
flexural behavior; preloaded RC beam; prestressed carbon textile reinforced concrete (CTRC) plates; strengthening; ultimate bending moment calculation
DOI:
10.14359/51749315
Date:
11/12/2025
Abstract:
In practical engineering, beams requiring strengthening were usually preloaded; research on their strengthening techniques directly affected structural safety and cost-effectiveness. This study investigated the flexural behavior of preloaded RC beams strengthened with prestressed carbon textile reinforced concrete (CTRC) plates using four-point bending tests. Parameters included preload levels and whether to unload during strengthening. Results showed that strengthening with prestressed CTRC plates effectively improved the service moment, ultimate bending moment, and crack resistance, and preload level and whether to unload during strengthening had no significant effect on the strengthening effect. All strengthened beams failed due to the CTRC plate rupturing, with post-failure moments reducing to the unstrengthened beam's ultimate moment level. Pre-cracking flexural stiffness decreased with increasing preload, and the stiffness after cracking was independent of the preload and strengthening method. Finally, the ultimate bending moments were evaluated using four current codes, with the Chinese code exhibiting the highest prediction accuracy.