Donadon, Bruno Fazendeiro (2024) Analysis of the mechanical behavior of glued laminated timber beams reinforced with synthetic and natural fibers. PhD thesis, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Brazil.
Abstract
The search for high performance, renewable and ecological materials has influenced the field of construction, leading researchers to develop new materials and new constructive techniques following these ideals or conceptions. One of the lines of research following such directions is the use of natural or synthetic fiber-reinforced polymers in structural elements forming, thus, a composite. The application of this composite can be implemented in elements in order to mechanically recover them or to design of the project with stiffness gain or prevent brittle failure. In this line of research, this work aims to evaluate the mechanical performance of reinforced polymers with natural fiber of Curauá and Sisal and synthetics Vectran fibers, applied separately in glued laminated timber beams. Numerical simulations were performed using commercial software to validate the results obtained from the experimental program. From the analysis of the results, it can be inferred that the developed numerical model satisfactorily converged with the experimental data. However, the interference observed in this analysis suggests that there are still factors not fully captured by the numerical model, which limits its effectiveness in predicting the mechanical behavior of fiber-reinforced beams. It was concluded that natural fibers exhibit high mechanical performance, but the adhesives usually employed in GLT (Glued Laminated Timber) bonding were not entirely effective in ensuring the adhesion of the reinforcement to the beam. On the other hand, the synthetic Vectran fibers proved to be efficient, and when used as structural reinforcement, the performance of the beams can be promising with good adhesion, although, in this research, the usual GLT adhesives did not show effectiveness in reinforcement when compared to epoxy adhesive. These findings indicate the need for further studies focused on optimizing the use of synthetic Vectran fibers, aiming to fully exploit their capabilities as reinforcement, while exploring alternatives to improve the efficiency of natural fibers like Sisal and Curauá.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | engineered wood; fiber reinforcement; finite element method; wooden beams |
| Index terms: | efficiency, numerical simulation, numerical model, program, fibre reinforcement, finite element method, reinforcement, beam, effectiveness, wood, composite |
| Subjects: | software systems, materials science, traditional and composite building materials, performance management, building materials, modelling and simulation, engineering analysis, structural engineering |
| Topics: | Digital Applications, Construction Materials, Design Practice, Engineering Principles, Quality Management, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
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