This paper presents the seismic performance of concrete bridge columns reinforced with both steel and fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP). A bond-based parametric experimental study was conducted on five FRP steel–reinforced concrete (FSRC) bridge columns—using basalt FRP (BFRP) bars and BFRP sheets—and two steel-reinforced concrete (SRC) bridge columns served as references to investigate the fundamental characteristics of the proposed reinforcement. The investigated bond parameters included the texture of the FRP bars (smooth and ribbed), diameter of the FRP bars, location of the FRP bars with respect to the steel bars, and application of external FRP confinement. All columns were tested under the combined effect of constant axial load and reversed cyclic loading. The experimental results showed that the FSRC bridge column could realize the existence of a stable postyield stiffness (hardening behavior) as well as a reasonable displacement ductility of up to 10 before encountering strength degradation. Moreover, the FRP bars added for column longitudinal reinforcement did not have a substantial impact on the column elastic stiffness. The bond condition of the FRP bars to the surrounding concrete had pronounced effects on the column failure mode, postyield stiffness, residual displacement, and ductility; thus, it could be adopted as a design parameter.

The opened beams always confused the designers due to the guidelines missing. In this research, six hybrid beams reinforced with mixed steel and basalt fiber-reinforced polymer (BFRP) bars and having constant cross-sections of 150 mm × 300 mm and a clear span of 1800 mm were cast and tested under a four-point loading setup. Generally, five beams had symmetrical rectangular openings with dimensions of 150 mm × 250 mm located at a distance of 250 mm (equivalent to the beam effective depth) from the beam support, while an additional solid beam served as a control. The studied parameters included the effect of using internal reinforcement (steel or BFRP bars) provided adjacent to the opening sides or by incorporating an external BFRP sheet around the opening corners. Also, double enhancement with internal steel reinforcement bars together with external strengthening BFRP sheet was investigated. The relevant results showed that the opened beam without enhancement lost 75% of the maximum load compared with the solid beam. Placing internal steel or BFRP bars around the openings increased the maximum load by 62% and 60%, respectively, compared to the non-enhanced opened beams. Using an external BFRP sheet to strengthen the opening corners of the beam enhanced the maximum load by 76% compared with the non-enhanced opened beam. Consequently, by combining both the internal steel reinforcement and external BFRP sheet around the openings, the maximum load increased by 137% compared with the non-enhanced opened beam. Ultimately, a numerical analysis of the three-dimensional finite element model was performed to confirm the experimental findings, and the relevant results showed compatibility correlations with the experimental ones. Also, the effect of various parameters such as BFRP reinforcement ratio and number of BFRP sheet layers around the openings was investigated by adapting the validated numerical model.

The opened beams always confused the designers due to the guidelines missing. In this research, six hybrid reinforced beams reinforced with mixed steel and basalt fiber reinforced polymer (BFRP) bars had constant cross-sections of 150mm x 300mm and a clear span of 1800mm. Generally, five beams have symmetrical rectangular openings with dimensions of 150mm x 250mm located at a distance of 250mm (equivalent to the beam effective depth) from the beam support in addition to a solid beam that is served as a control reference. The studied parameters included the effect of using internal reinforcement (steel or BFRP bars) provided along the opening or by incorporating an external BFRP sheet around the opening corners. Also, the conduction of double enhancement with internal steel reinforcement bars further external strengthening BFRP sheet was investigated. The relevant results showed that the opened beam without enhancement lost almost 74.66% of the maximum load compared with the solid beam. Placing internal steel or BFRP bars around the openings increased the maximum load by 62.07% and 59.68%, respectively in comparison to the non-enhanced opened beams. Using an external BFRP sheet to strengthen the opening corners of the beam enhanced the maximum load by 76.39% compared with the non-enhanced opened beam. Therefore, if the beam double enhancement with an external BFRP sheet and internal steel reinforcement around the openings, the maximum load increased by 137.40% compared with the non-enhanced opened beam. Ultimately to further analyze the experimental results and confirm their findings, the study was extended to include the numerical analysis using three dimensional finite element modeling and the results correlated very well with the experimental ones.

Basalt Fiber Reinforced Polymer (BFRP) bars are manufactured from sustainable natural materials. BFRP Young’s modulus constitutes weak performance to the serviceability limits in the structural reinforced concrete (RC) elements, but using post-tensioning systems controls the serviceability limits. Nine RC slabs were tested under a four-point bending scheme. However, the efficiency of using the BFRP post-tensioning system bars as a main reinforcement of RC slabs was evaluated in two different stress levels of 10% and 50% of the rupture strength of the bars. The near-surface mounted (NSM) external strengthening post-tensioning BFRP system by two different stress levels of 10% and 30% of the rupture strength was investigated. Additionally, the hybrid reinforcement performance of both steel and BFRP bars was studied. The relevant results showed that the post-tensioning BFRP systems significantly enhanced the ultimate load and vertical deflection of the RC slabs if the stress level was 50% and 30% for the internally reinforced and externally strengthened slabs, respectively. BFRP bars in hybrid RC slabs achieved more energy absorption. At the same reinforcement area, the internal bonded BFRP bars can achieve a higher ultimate load than the unbonded external BFRP bars by 11%. Furthermore, the increment rate in prestressing losses for RC slabs with higher prestressing levels of BFRP bars was less than that of slabs with lower prestressing levels of BFRP bars. Consequently, the efficiency of the external post-tensioning system was 95.78% for the RC slab with a 50% stress level after 1000 hrs, and it’s recommended as a design guideline.