Static performance of precast concrete arches with carbon fiber reinforced polymer reinforcement

In this paper, static performances of a new precast concrete arch system with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) reinforcement were investigated. Varied concrete strengths and segment types of precast concrete arches were tested. The results show that the increase of concrete strength can improve the bearing capacity of the precast arches with CFRP reinforcement. The ultimate bearing capacity of the precast arches segmented at the arch vault with CFRP reinforcement can reach or even exceed that of complete arches, while the precast arch segmented at the shoulder had lower ultimate load. A theoretical analysis method was proposed to predict the failure and bearing capacity of the precast concrete arches with CFRP reinforcement, which were found to be in close agreement with the experimental result.