Basalt Fibre Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) is a new material in civil engineering and has shown to be a promising material for infrastructure strengthening. In comparison to carbon fiber, glass fiber and other composites, it has some advantages such as high-temperature resistance and low cost. At the Structural and Composite Laboratory at Reykjavik University (SEL) several research projects involving strengthening concrete beams and columns by using FRP materials have been on-going in recent years. These tests have shown improvements in strength and durability compared to unstrengthened concrete members. The benefit of using basalt fiber or other FRP material is that they are non-corrosive, which is a good choice for reinforcing concrete structure exposed to de-icing salts, for examples in bridge decks and parking garage elements. Also for concrete exposed to marine environment, such as seawalls, water breaks and buildings or other structures located near a waterfront. Two research projects are presented in this paper; a test of prestressed concrete with internal basalt rods instead of steel and a test of columns strengthened by wrapping fibre-reinforced composite sheets around the columns to increase their strength and ductility. These experimental tests show increasing strength and ductile for both the beams and the columns.

Although basalt fiber-reinforced polymers (BFRPs) have been known for a few decades, new trends such as sustainability and environmental care have provoked intensified research on its structural applications. In construction, BFRPs, as internal reinforcement, have to compete with traditional steel reinforcement products. Because of their high resistance to aggressive environments, BFRPs have emerged as an attractive solution for the infrastructure in coastal zones. In this article, we discuss some aspects of BFRP applications such as flexural reinforcement of concrete beams. The mechanical performances of a BFRP-reinforced beam are illustrated by using a widely accepted model based on the classical beam theory. The elasticity modulus of the BFRP reinforcement is lower than that of structural steel. Therefore, to meet serviceability requirements (e.g., in terms of limitation on the mid-span deflection of a beam), BFRP could be pre-tensioned. The positive effect of pre-tensioning is outlined by finite element analysis. An original numerical procedure involves a constitutive relation for concrete based on damage mechanics. Experimental results previously reported in the literature provide the background for the numerical model procedures. The numerical procedure predicts the mechanical response of the concrete beam with BFRP reinforcement subjected to four-point bending in terms of load-deflection relationship and dominant failure mode.

Having a realistic estimate of structural parameters, such as natural frequency and damping is important for design purposes. In this study, available wind and earthquake induced acceleration data from four multi-story reinforced concrete buildings are utilized to examine structural behaviour and system parameters. The buildings measurement systems are described and the recorded structural response data presented. The data stems from two different sources of excitation, i.e. wind and earthquake, and are recorded for various excitation levels and environmental conditions. System identification analyses of the buildings are carried out applying previously verified parametric methods to the recorded data. The natural frequencies and critical damping ratios established from the recordings are compared to values estimated using design guidelines and international data compilations for reinforced concrete structures of similar type. Considerable variability is discovered between the different estimation formulas and the observed natural frequencies of the buildings are found to lie at the upper limit of the prediction formula.

This article discusses the flexural strength of fiber reinforced concrete beams made by adding an optimal percentage of basalt fibers to the concrete mix. Two types of standard C30/37: XC1 concrete were used in this study, one with the aggregate size limit 19 mm and the other with the aggregate size of max. 4 mm. The basalt fibers used are two different types: Reforcetech minibar is a stiff basalt fiber, and its diameter is 0.72 mm and length 50 mm; Basaltex BCS17-25.4-KV1 is 30 mm in length with a flat cross-section of 0.017 × 4 mm. The test method measures the flexural efficiency of the strength parameters extracted from fiber reinforced concrete. The conclusion of this study is that the scale, quantity and type of basalt fibers have an impact on how the concrete acts under load. All types of fiber show promising results.