Behavior of grouted splice sleeve connection using FRP sheet

Abstract

Most existing studies on grouted splice connections have focused on the bond behavior between connected steel rebars and conventional steel or iron sleeves. These research findings cannot properly predict the bond behavior and performance of the grouted splice connections, particularly when a new splice device, such as fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) materials, are adopted. The main purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility of the proposed grouted splice sleeve connection (GSSC) using sheet materials of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP). A total of 45 GSSC specimens with various rebar embedded lengths and different polymer sleeve materials were tested to failure under incremental axial pull-out load to evaluate the bond performance of the connected steel rebars in confined grout provided by the FRP sleeves. To evaluate the confinement effect of FRP sleeves on the tensile strength of the grouted connection, an analytical model was developed. The pull-out test results showed that the rebar embedded length was the major parameter affecting the average tensile strength of the GSSC. Also, the effects of mechanical properties of FRP sheets, such as the number of FRP layers and type of FRP sheets, contributed to the tensile strength of the GSSC sleeves that allow the transmission of tensile load between rebars through the medium of grout, aluminum tube, and FRP sheets. The analytical model that incorporates the confinement effects predicted well the experimental ultimate tensile strength of GSSC connections.