Flexural Performance of RC Beams Repaired with Commercial Repair Materials

Abstract

Different types of cementitious repair materials are commercially available in the local market. Almost all repair material suppliers claim that their products are most suitable for concrete repair under different environmental and loading conditions. This necessitates the need to check all aspects of the repair materials which include their behavior when used in structural elements. The objective of this research was to investigate the performance of the most commonly used cementitious repair materials when used to repair structural elements. This was achieved through the evaluation of the flexural performance of 24 RC beams repaired using nine selected types of the most commonly used repair materials (supplied by three leading suppliers in the country). The results were compared with two identical beams repaired with concrete and also with two identical beams cast with concrete monolithically (no repair). The results showed that the repair materials subjected to tensile stresses had no significant contribution (to beam response) compared to normal concrete. However, the influence of the repair materials was much better when used to repair structural parts subjected to compressive stresses. Keywords: RC beams, Repair materials, Flexural performance