Effects of Steel Springs on the Flexural Strength of Normal Concrete Beams: A Numerical and Experimental Study

Abstract

In this research study, the possibility of deployment of steel spring utilization to reinforce a concrete beam is investigated and compared with steel bars; this is done to enhance the flexural strength of the structural concrete beam. For this purpose, three specimens are prepared: a plain concrete beam, a reinforced concrete beam, and a spring-reinforced concrete beam. A point bending test is dedicated to calculating the failure strength of each specimen. ABAQUS program is being used to simulate the three test specimens with the same properties as the experimental test samples to verify the results. The results of the numerical simulations for the flexural stress and the plastic strain of each model are collected and compared with the experimental tests. The results manifested a particularly good verification for the experimental tests, and the spring-reinforced concrete beam displayed an excellent flexural strength that exceeded the flexural strength of the reinforced concrete beam. This indicates that the spring-reinforced concrete beam, according to the properties of the spring, is a promising endeavor for use in the construction industry.