Numerical Investigation Of The Flexural Behavior Of Steel Plates Reinforced With Hybrid Flax/Carbon Composite Patches

Abstract

For strengthening or rehabilitation of existing structures, patches of fiber-reinforced polymers (FRP) materials are being adhesively bonded to the existing metallic structures. So far, Carbon FRP (CFRP) are the main composite materials industrially implemented for metal structural reinforcement, due to their reliability and high mechanical performances. However, multiple researchers have highlighted the negative environmental impact of synthetic composite materials, and interest is shifting towards the use and development of bio-based composite materials. This paper presents an FE numerical investigation of the use of Hybrid Carbon/Flax FRP as an alternative solution for structural reinforcement of steel plates under flexural loading. Four different configurations of patches are studied to be bonded to steel rectangular plates, and three point bending tests are numerically modelled to simulate the flexural behaviour of the assemblies. Compared to the unreinforced steel plate baseline, reinforcements C5, F5, CFFFC, and FFFCC exhibited improvements of 149%, 120%, 137%, and 145% in bending stiffness, respectively.

Mohamed Amine TAZI

PhD Candidate (co-supervised with CESI-France)

Curious and passionate about science—especially solid mechanics—I am interested in the application of composite materials across various industrial sectors, with a focus on enhancing their mechanical performance and environmental sustainability.

Sofia Teixeira de Freitas

Principal Investigator

Sofia Teixeira de Freitas researches the structural integrity of bonded and layered materials to enable durable, sustainable structures. She is also an accredited group facilitator, committed to building academic environments grounded in cooperation and inclusion—key to overcoming technological limits and addressing the challenges of a truly sustainable society.