Seismic Response of Ultra-High Performance Concrete-Filled FRP Tube Columns

Abstract

The seismic response of a novel hybrid column made of a fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) tube filled with ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) was studied. A methodology was proposed to estimate the maximum ground acceleration capacity of five UHPC-filled FRP tubes (UHPCFFT) and one reference concrete (RC) column based on the results of their pseudo-static tests. The proposed analytical methodology can be applied to any pseudo-static test. The analysis showed 20% higher maximum ground acceleration capacity for the steel-free UHPCFFT column with a thin FRP tube, as compared to its RC counterpart. The results were further verified using a nonlinear dynamic simulation.