Effect of chloride content on bond behavior between FRP and concrete

For reinforced concrete structures located along the seaside, the penetration of chloride ions into concrete may be a threat to the durability of the structures. Experimental investigations were carried out to study the effect of chloride content on the bond behavior between concrete and fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) plates. Direct shear tests were conducted on the FRP strengthened concrete members. Before testing, the specimens were immersed in NaCl solutions with concentrations ranging from 3%-15% for different time (0-120 d). Then, the specimens were dried and tested to obtain the initial and ultimate debonding loads, together with strain distributions along the FRP plates of different load values. The correlations between chloride content and debonding parameters are established. Test results show that the debonding parameters are closely related to the immersing time rather than the chloride content of the solution. © 2010 Tianjin University and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.