Influence of construction conditions on strength of post installed bonded anchors

This paper presents an extensive experimental work on various factors related to the construction conditions that affect the strength of post installed bonded anchors in concrete. The strength of the anchors was evaluated in conventional and self-compacting concrete. Two walls, 2 m high, one of conventional vibrated concrete (VC) and the other of self-compacting concrete (SCC) were built. In each of the walls, 175 anchors of 20 mm rebars were installed. The variables considered for each concrete block were the type of drilling machine used for drilling the hole, type of filling material, moisture conditions of the hole during installation, cleanliness of the hole, and installation direction. A detailed statistical analysis was used to evaluate the influence of the considered variables on the anchors ultimate capacity and slippage of the rebar at service level. The results show that the installation conditions significantly affect the strength of the anchors. The type of drilling machine has a major impact on the anchor strength, while the drill diameter had no significant impact on the results.