The behaviour of GFRP reinforced concrete columns under monotonic and cyclic axial compression

Retrofitting reinforced concrete columns with FRP materials is a recent but established technique based on their high strength/weight ratio and on other relative advantages, including the fact that FRP external shells prevent or mitigate environmental degradation of the concrete and consequent corrosion of the steel reinforcement. These techniques require, nevertheless, further studies and this paper presents and discusses experimental results obtained in tests of RC columns jacketed with GFRP under monotonic and cyclic axial compression, topic especially relevant when interventions on seismic zones are required. In order to evaluate the effect of the loading type on strength and ductility, 27 circular columns with 750mm height and 150 mm diameter, either of plain concrete or of RC, were tested. Among these circular columns, 11 were confined with two plies of CFRP whereas six were confined with three plies of GFRP. Comparison of results with proposed empirical models is shown.