While traditional retrofitting methods could be time consuming and uneconomical, an alternative repair method is suggested using Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRP) laminate strips, providing engineers with a competitive solution that will increase the life-cycle of bridges repaired. Previous work conducted by the authorsÆ showed that the method is effective and provided a reliable option to strengthen and rehabilitate steel girder bridges. This paper investigates the various parameters affecting its utilization. The paper summarizes the extensive parametric Finite Element (FE) Analysis work conducted to strengthen steel beams using the novel CFRP laminate strips configurations. The paper describes the formulation of the parametric study program and the development of the FE modeling. The parametric study was conducted with three simply supported steel beams under four-point loading, in addition to beams subjected to uniform loading. Verification of the effectiveness of the model was performed by the authors through prior work. The results of the parametric study conducted in this paper show a significant gain in the beamÆs elastic and ultimate capacities. Theultimate gain of the beam greatly depends on the configuration of the CFRP laminates and the laminateÆs dimensions. The conclusion is that there are specific sensitive parameters controlling the effectiveness of the CFRP laminate rehabilitation technique, such as CFRP laminate thickness, length, width, and strength. An adequate design of the rehabilitation method, which takes into consideration the effective parameters, would result in an effective design.
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