Numerical investigation on the surface crack growth in FRP-reinforced steel plates subjected to tension.

• Evaluate the SIF of surface cracked steel plate reinforced with FRP under tension by FEM. • The FE model is validated by a experimental study. • By the validated FE model and Paris' law, surface crack growth rate is quantitatively predicted. • Reveal the mechanism of FRP reinforcement on the surface crack growth. • Indicate the key influential parameters of FRP reinforcement on surface crack growth. In this paper, we analyse the surface crack growth in the Fibre-Reinforced Polymer (FRP) reinforced steel plates subjected to tension by means of the finite element (FE) method. Following the experimental study, a three-dimensional FE model is developed to evaluate the Stress Intensity Factor (SIF) of the surface crack, and the crack growth rate is calculated by using the Paris' law. Then the FE model is validated by the experimental results. Afterwards, on account of the validated FE model, a parametric study is developed in order to guide the optimization design of FRP reinforcement accounting for different reinforcing schemes and multiple influential parameters. The results indicate that the single-side FRP reinforcement on the cracked surface is the most efficient method, owing to the generated out-of-plane bending moment. In addition, the optimum bond length and number of layers are indicated. Besides, surface crack growth is sensitive to the influential parameters including aspect ratio of the surface crack and crack dimension, while less sensitive to the Carbon-FRP (CFRP) tensile modulus, and the adhesive thickness. The analysis is of instructive value to facilitate the application of FRP reinforcement on the surface cracked metallic structure repairing domain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]