Significance of cracking uncertainty on predicting deflection of FRC-RC beams

This paper presents an alternative approach to examine uncertainty in predicting deflections of fiber-reinforced polymer-reinforced concrete (FRP-RC) beams. The use of nonspecificity of concrete cracking as a measure of cracking variability is proposed. Non-specificity is a type of uncertainty associated with having multiple alternatives to define variables (e.g. modulus of rupture, tensile strength to describe cracking). Nonspecificity in cracking can be described by considering cracking strength interval. Using a cracking strength interval, deflection intervals of FRP-RC beams are calculated. Deflection is modeled using cracked plane frame analysis integrated with recent models describing concrete tension stiffening with fiber reinforced polymers (FRP) reinforcement. A deflection database of FRP-RC beams is developed and examined. The uncertainty in deflection prediction is evaluated by comparing the measured deflection from the database with respect to the predicted deflection interval. The significance of deflection prediction parameters on the uncertainty in predicting deflection of FRP-RC beams was analyzed. It is shown that when the applied moment to cracking moment ratio gets close to unity, the uncertainty in predicting deflection of concrete beams reinforced with FRP increases.