TEKNIK DERGI, cilt.22, sa.1, ss.5319-5334, 2011 (SCI-Expanded)
Bonding of steel plates to the bottom surface of reinforced concrete beams is a common technique of strengthening against bending. However, in the studies carried out up to date, significant ductility related problems have been observed. In this study, a simple and practical end connection has been developed that enables the beams strengthened by this approach to reach adequate ductility capacity in addition to the strength. In this experimental study, a total of eight beams scaled 1/l, have been prepared and tested two of which were used as reference beams. Of the remaining six specimens, three beams were strengthened solely against bending while the last three were strengthened against both shear and bending. Despite an approximate increase of two and half times in strength, the beams were observed to behave in a quite ductile manner.