Strengthening Reinforced Concrete Members Using FRP-Evaluating Fire Performance, Challenges, and Future Research...

Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites are increasingly used in civil engineering for strengthening and repairing existing reinforced concrete (RC) members using externally bonded reinforcement (EBR) and near-surface mounted (NSM) methods. However, the fire performance of FRP-strengthened RC members has been an important issue that should be properly considered in the fire safety design process since FRP composites exhibit significant performance degradation at elevated temperatures. This paper aims to review studies on the fire performance of FRP-strengthened RC members based on the existing research results presented in the literature to provide a comprehensive understanding of key factors influencing the structural behavior of FRP-strengthened RC members under fire conditions. It provides an overview of FRP composite material properties, such as their mechanical and thermal behavior and bond characteristics between FRP-to-concrete interfaces at elevated temperatures. Additionally, this paper reviews experimental and numerical research conducted on FRP-strengthened RC members, examining load-carrying capacities and fire endurance ratings. Finally, this review will provide existing fire resistance design methods as well as simple design methods for temperature prediction.