Fatigue Rehabilitation of Coped Steel Beams Using Carbon Fibre Reinforced Polymers

Abstract

Coped beams are susceptible to fatigue cracking in the web at the cope radius when subjected to tension in the coped region. Use of an adhesively bonded composite patch over the crack can reduce the stress concentration and delay further crack growth. This report contains the results of a full-scale experimental study on the fatigue mitigation of coped beams using CFRP patches, varying the patch thickness, orientation and eccentricity (single side vs. double side). Double sided repairs were found to be vastly superior to single sided repairs. A small-scale experimental study was also conducted, varying only the precrack length, and showing that the effectiveness of the patch decreased with longer precracks. Also presented is an analytical study for failure prediction of the fatigue mitigation method.