Plastic hinge relocation in reinforced concrete beams using Cu-Al-Mn SMA bars

Self-centering earthquake resistant systems have attracted the attention of researchers because of their promising potential in controlling seismic residual drifts, and, therefore, reducing the associated repair costs. The use of Ni-Ti superelastic shape memory alloy (SMA) constitutes a considerable portion of this research. Cu-Al-Mn superelastic SMA has been recently developed to eliminate the high cost of Ni-Ti SMA, as well as, to have better machining characteristics. This paper explores the use of Cu-Al-Mn SMA bars to relocate the plastic hinge of concrete beams through an experimental-numerical study. The cyclic performance of four beams was examined. The first was reinforced with steel bars and the remaining three were reinforced with combination of SMA and steel bars. The location of the SMA bars was different for each of the examined beams. The beams were loaded such that the moment diagram is zero at midspan and maximum at the ends to simulate the expected seismic moments. Results of the experimental-numerical investigation confirmed the recentering capability of SMA RC beams. Relocating the plastic hinge, by placing Cu-Al-Mn SMA bars away from the beam ends, improved the strength, rigidity, and energy dissipation.