A novel hybrid thin jacketing method for seismic retrofitting of substandard reinforced concrete columns

This paper introduces a novel hybrid thin jacketing method for seismic strengthening of substandard reinforced concrete (RC) columns for which structural repair mortar along with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) and longitudinal steel bars are utilized. The method involves three application phases comprising a) removing the cover concrete, b) re-forming the cover concrete with structural repair mortar just after installing extra longitudinal steel bars c) transverse wrapping of CFRP sheets. The effect of using different types of structural repair mortar and its application process are other test parameters taken into account in this study. To evaluate the efficacy of the proposed method, a comprehensive experimental program was conducted, consisting of six large-scale RC column specimens with square and rectangular cross-sections. For all of the specimens tested under a simultaneous constant axial load and reversed cyclic lateral loading, three main properties representing existing substandard RC columns such as a) insufficient transverse reinforcement, b) high axial load ratio (0.75) and, c) relatively high shear force corresponding to moment capacity to shear capacity ratios between 0.60 and 0.80, were considered. The responses of specimens were specified in terms of the lateral load-displacement curves, stiffness variation, ductility ratios, damage progression, and energy dissipation. The experimental results demonstrated that in case the retrofitting method is properly applied, the strengthened columns exhibit satisfactory performance in terms of strength and ductility with a remarkable improvement with respect to the substandard columns. Furthermore, a numerical study was conducted to validate the experimental results by using the OpenSees framework.