A Review on Bond Performance and Splice Behavior of FRP Bars to Concrete

Replacing steel reinforcements with fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) reinforcements is considered as one of the best solutions to the corrosion problem associated with steel-reinforced concrete (RC) structure. The bond behavior of FRP reinforcing bars in concrete is one of the most critical parameters that control the behavior of FRP materials in concrete structures. Lap splicing of reinforcing bars is inevitable in reinforced concrete structures. A comprehensive review of the bond strength and splice length of FRP reinforcing bars in reinforced concrete elements is carried out in this paper. After reviewing three North American standards and guidelines (CSA S806-12, CSA S6-19, and ACI 440.1R-15) provisions on development length and the bond strength, a discussion on the factors affecting the bond behavior is presented. A database including 74 specimens reinforced with FRP spliced bars was collected from literature to compare the code provisions on splice length. It was concluded that ACI 440.1R-15 is more conservative than two other design codes.