The results of experimental research on a single span reinforced concrete beams are presented in the paper. The study was undertaken to explain some issues, amongst which the most important one was the recognition of strain distribution in the shear zone of RC beams. It was decided to adopt the modified Digital Image Correlation Method (DIC) and the software created by K. Suprynowicz to follow the surface deformations. This was the first application of the software to the concrete structures behaviour analysis. Hence, another aim of the study was to confirm the proper susceptibility and usefulness of this tool for further research on concrete elements. What’s more the scope of the software future development was defined, that would allow for observation of some particular phenomena characteristic for concrete, like cracking. Finally, the conclusion is presented, that application of the proposed variant of DIC method to concrete structures is promising, although for the recognition of shear strain distribution it requires increasing the accuracy by increasing spatial resolution of images and modifications of the software.
Experimental study on shear deformation of reinforced concrete beams using digital image correlation
