Bending and shear reinforcements for timber beams using GFRP plates

•A procedure is developed for the repair or reinforcement of timber beams.•This procedure uses fiberglass and cork plates bonded with epoxy resin.•The proposed experimental technique was tested in two situations.–repairing beam ends: Reinforcement system 1.–repairing and/or reinforcement of the center of the beams: Reinforcement system 2.

The aim of this paper is to present the results from a procedure developed for the repair or reinforcement of timber beams. This procedure uses fiberglass and cork plates bonded with epoxy resin. The proposed experimental technique was tested in two situations: repairing beam ends that had rotted (Reinforcement system 1), and repairing and/or reinforcement of the center of the beam damaged because of a fault or the need to increase the resistance capacity of the timber (Reinforcement system 2). Tests were carried out using Scots pine beams with a size of 50 × 50 × 725 mm3 for the reinforcement system 1, and 50 × 50 × 1000 mm3 for the reinforcement system 2. In both systems, the reinforcements were tested in various situations, and provided effectiveness similar to that of a healthy beam, and an increased load-carrying capacity of up to 50%.