Flexural behaviors of hybrid concrete beams reinforced with BFRP bars and steel bars

• The tensile and bond behaviors of BFRP bars were test and compared with steel bars.
• The flexural behaviors of hybrid reinforced concrete beams were analyzed.
• Simplified flexural capacity formula of appropriate hybrid RC beams is proposed.

Flexural behaviors of hybrid concrete beams reinforced with BFRP (Basalt Fiber Reinforced Plastic) bars and steel bars are studied in this paper. Tensile test, standard pull-out test of BFRP bars, and static flexural experiment of five different hybrid reinforced concrete beams were made. The tests show that BFRP bars have high tensile strength and low elastic modulus compared with steel bars. The bond strength between BFRP bars and concrete is similar to the bond strength of steel bars and concrete and shows good bond performance. The bond strength relative coefficient of BFRP bars can be considered to be 1.0. The crack spacing and crack width are analyzed and suitable formulas for calculation are proposed. The flexural capacity of appropriate hybrid reinforced beams is analyzed and a simplified formula for calculating its value is proposed. Results show that the value of the flexural capacity calculated by the proposed simplified formula is close to the experimental value. This proves that the formula can be successfully applied. By controlling the reinforcement ratio and the value of Af/As appropriately, the ductility of hybrid reinforced beams can meet the requirements of normal service conditions.