Finite element analysis of fibre reinforced timber beams under flexural loading

Abstract

Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) is a popular product used in the building and construction industry because of its high strength, serviceability, aesthetic characteristics, and cost-effectiveness. However, LVL has traditionally been limited to residential and small light commercial buildings. To expand the use of LVL and reduce the need for steel and reinforced concrete structural members, a comprehensive computational study is conducted to understand the material’s structural performance and find an optimal strengthening ratio. In this paper, a new 3-dimensional Finite Element model was introduced and evaluated to predict the structural behaviour, strength properties, and failure damage modes of LVL timber beams reinforced with a Carbon Fibre Reinforcement Polymer (CFRP) sheet. The model is validated with three experimental tests from the literature, with the reinforced timber model showing a 1.8% error compared to the plain timber model’s 7% error. Additionally, a parametric study is conducted to understand the effects of reinforcement length on the structural behaviour of the reinforced beam, with mathematical equations established to express the relationships. The study found that reinforcing 50% of the beam span generally resulted in the most significant strength improvement. This investigation is made for various strength and serviceability parameters.