Strengthening of Bent LVL Beams with Near-Surface Mounted (NSM) FRP Reinforcement

The topic of the article is the analysis of the static work of unreinforced and reinforced with composite material timber beams under bending tests. The results of the experimental tests and a brief outline of the characteristics of the internal reinforcement of wood structures are presented. Experimental tests were performed on full-scale beams made of laminated veneer lumber (LVL) with nominal dimensions of 45 × 200 × 3400 mm. Two strips of carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) reinforcement were glued into rectangular grooves in the component bottom with two-component epoxy resin (0.62% reinforcement percentage). The reinforcement mainly affected the enhancement of the maximum bending moment values evaluated at the points of application as having concentrated forces of 32% and 24% in comparison to the unreinforced elements. Increases of 11% and 7% in the global modulus of elasticity in the bending and stiffness coefficients were achieved, respectively. The failure of the reference beams was caused by exceeding the tensile strength of the LVL. The reinforced elements were characterized by a greater variation in failure mode, resulting from tension, compression or lateral torsional buckling. The strain profile reading showed a higher utilization of the compression characteristic of veneer in specimens reinforced with carbon laminates.