STRENGTHENING OF AXIALLY LOADED CIRCULAR CONCRETE COLUMNS USING

STAINLESS STEEL WIRE MESH (SSWM)-EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATIONS,

ANALYTICAL APPROACH AND INSTALLATION GUIDELINES.

V.K.SINGH1, P.V PATEL2

1. Dy.General Manager (Civil) , Engineering Services, ONGC, Ahmedabad -380005, India,

E-mail vksongc@gmail.com
2. Prof. and Head, Department of Civil Engineering, Nirma University, Ahmedabad-382481,
India,
E-mail paresh.patel@nirmauni.ac.in

ABSTRACT: The columns are the most important elements of a concrete structure and their failure results
in a catastrophic failure of the structure. The capacity of existing columns needs to be enhanced by
retrofitting when there is an increase in loading due to changes in usage or change in design specifications.
In this paper, Stainless Steel Wire Mesh (SSWM) conforming to AISI 304SS, as an alternative material for
strengthening of columns has been explored. An experimental investigation has been carried out for
evaluation of axial strength of M15 grade plain cement concrete (PCC) circular columns strengthened with
SSWM. Column specimens of 200 mm diameter with various heights 400 mm, 800 mm and 1200 mm are
used in the study. Specimens are strengthened with one and two wraps of SSWM applied using Sikadur
30LP epoxy. Ultimate tensile strength of SSWM and bond strength of SSWM with concrete are studied to
check the feasibility of SSWM for strengthening. The performances of strengthened specimens under axial
load are compared with control specimens. From the study of 18 column specimens, it is found that axial
compressive strength is increased in range of 19% to 63% and 49% to 86% when columns are strengthened
with one and two wraps of SSWM respectively. Analytical studies have been made to find the axial load
capacity of wrapped columns with SSWM using ACI 440.2R 2008 and CNR-DT 200/2004 guidelines.
From the comparison of results, it is observed that experimental results closely match with results from
CNR DT 200/2004 design guidelines. Installation guidelines for SSWM on concrete columns are given for
practicing engineers.

KEYWORDS: Axial strengthening, columns, stainless steel wire mesh, bond strength, tensile
strength, load-displacement.

1. INTRODUCTION

Steel and concrete jacketing has been used since long for retrofitting of columns. Glass fiber reinforced
polymer (GFRP) and carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) have higher tensile strength but its strength
is not fully utilized due to de-bonding problem and brittle tensile behavior. Steel fiber reinforced polymer
(SFRP) composite materials have been recently introduced as an alternative to GFRP and CFRP composite
materials. In this study, an indigenously available stainless steel wire mesh (SSWM) available in local
market has been explored and has been investigated for their tensile strengths, bond strengths and
confinement of concrete columns to increase their axial load carrying capacities.

2. EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION
The aim of this investigation was to find out the axial strength of SSWM confined concrete with increase
in the number of wraps and slenderness of the specimen. Concrete with target compressive strength of
15MPa was chosen for casting of columns. The SSWM of different wire thicknesses and opening sizes for

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versatile use is available in market. SSWM of designation 40 [3] was selected based on its tensile strength.
The technical information about SSWM 3 is given in Table 1. Sikadur 30 LP [4] epoxy adhesive was
considered for bonding SSWM to concrete columns.
Table 1 Wire Mesh Data [3]

Mesh Mesh Type Mesh per Weight Thickness of Size of Shape of

name Inch (GSM) wire(mm) Opening opening
(mm)
SSWM 3 40 40 1104.85 0.27 0.365 Rectangular

2.1 Tensile Strength Test of Wire Mesh

Steel plates of size 150mmx100mm were bonded with Sikadur 30 LP epoxy at both ends of the 500 mm
long and 100 mm wide SSWM strips and cured for 7 days. These strips were tested in Universal Testing
Machine (UTM) under axial tensile load. The tension test result calculation of SSWM are shown in Table
2. SSWM 3 was selected for experimental work due to its high tensile strength , high rupture strain and
lower cost. The stress vs strain curve for SSWM 3 is shown in Fig.1.
Table 2 Tensile strength testing of SSWM 3
Sr. SSWM SSWM 3 Unit
no.
1 SSWM no. 40 -
2 Avg. UTS of 693.80 N/mm2
wire
3 Average 13.58 mm
elongation
4 Rupture strain 0.045 mm/mm

800
800
Stress (N/mm2)

600
600
400
Stress(N/mm2)

Specimen-1 400
200 Specimen-1
Specimen-2 200
0 Specimen-2
0.000 0.050 0.100 0
Strain(mm/mm)
0 0.005 0.01
Strain(mm/mm)

Fig. 1. Tensile stress vs strain in tension test Fig.2. Tensile stress vs strain in bond test.

2.2 Bond Behavior of SSWM

The bond test of SSWM with concrete was carried out in a specially fabricated apparatus. The stress vs
strain curve is shown in Fig.2 with Sikadur 30 LP. The average failure strength was found to be 732.49
N/mm2. The failure mode was tearing of the wire mesh and no debonding was observed.

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2.3 Column Specimen Preparation and Testing
A set of 18 circular column specimens of M15 grade concrete were cast of height 400 mm, 800 mm and
1200 mm and each of 200 mm diameter. Strengthening of columns was done by wrapping SSWM on
column with Sikadur 30 LP. Fig. 3(a), 3(b) and 3(c) shows the cleaning, grinding and application of Sikadur
30LP respectively. Fig. 4 (a),4(b) and 4(c) shows wrapping of SSWM, wrapped column specimen and a set
of wrapped columns ready for testing respectively. Testing of columns was carried out on loading frame as
shown in Fig. 5. The load was applied using hydraulic Jack of 2000kN capacity as shown in Fig. 6.

Fig.3 (a) Cleaning of column specimen 3(b) Grinding of column 3(c) Application of Sikadur 30LP.

Fig.4(a) Wrapping of SSWM on column 4(b) Wrapped column specimen 4(c) A set of wrapped columns
ready for testing, Fig.5 Loading frame for testing of columns. Fig.6 Test set-up for measuring linear and
lateral displacements.

3. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

The columns were tested under loading frame. The compressive strength was calculated from the loads
indicated by jack at failure of the specimens. Increase in compressive strength of columns with SSWM
strengthening is shown in Table 3.

Table 3 Summary of ultimate axial strength of columns

Sr Name of Ultimate Compressive Strength Relative increase in

no. Column (kN) compressive strength (%)

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 Average Increase in from one wrap to two

Specimen

Specimen
compressive Compressive wraps

2
strength (kN) Strength (%)

1 C400M15W0 560 500 530 -

2 C400M15W1 620 640 630 19
3 C400M15W2 780 800 790 49 25.39
4 C800M15W0 480 490 485 -
5 C800M15W1 800 760 780 61
6 C800M15W2 820 840 830 71 6.41
7 C1200M15W0 500 500 500 -
8 C1200M15W1 830 780 805 61
9 C1200M15W2 900 960 930 86 15.52

Table 4 Variation of axial compressive strength of M15 grade concrete with column height

Name of column Height of No. of Experimental Relative

column SSWM value (kN) Strength
(mm) wraps increase
C400M15W1 400 1 630
C800M15W1 800 780 24
C1200M15W1 1200 805 28
C400M15W2 400 2 790
C800M15W2 800 830 5
C1200M15W2 1200 930 18

5.0 EVALUATION OF AXIAL STRENGTH USING DESIGN GUIDELINES

There are various design guidelines available for calculating load carrying capacity of FRP strengthened columns.
Axial load carrying capacity of circular columns with wrapping using ACI 440.2R-08 [1] and CNR-DT 200/2004
[2] are found out and comparison between experimental results and analytical results are made in Table 5. It is
found that the results from CNR-DT 200/2004 match closely with experimental results as compared to ACI
440.2R-08 results.

Table 5 Comparison of Experimental results with Analytical results.

Concrete No. of Ultimate compressive strength (kN) Increase in ultimate

Grade SSWM compressive strength (%)
wraps ACI CNR Col. Experi Experi ACI CNR Experime
440.2R DT height - - 440.2R DT -ntal
2008 200/ (mm) mental mental 2008 200/
2004 (Avg) 2004

M15 No 471 471 400 530 505 - - -

wrap 800 485
1200 500
688 683 400 630 738 46 45 46

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 One 800 780
wrap 1200 805
Two 1168 832 400 790 850 148 77 68
wrap 800 830
1200 930

Table 6 Comparative ratios of axial load capacity of M15 grade concrete columns from Experimental
and Analytical studies.
Grade of concrete No. of Ratio of ALC by Exp. Ratio of ALC by Ratio of ALC by
SSWM work and ACI.2R Exp. work and ACI.2R and CNR
wraps CNR DT DT

M 15 0 1.07 1.07 1.00

1 1.07 1.08 1.01
2 0.73 1.02 1.40
Average Value 0.96 1.06 1.14
Standard Deviation 0.160 0.026 0.186
Coefficient of Variance 16.75 2.48 16.39

DISCUSSIONS
In tension test, the average ultimate tensile strength of stainless steel wire mesh was found to be 693.80
N/mm2 for the SSWM 40. The ultimate average rupture strain is 0.045 mm/mm and the modulus of
elasticity of mesh as calculated from stress-strain curve is 151230 N/mm2. In bond test, no debonding
occurred with Sikadur 30 LP and yielded higher tensile bond strength of 718.92 N/mm2. As per Table 3,
for 400mm height columns, there is 19% and 49% increase in axial strength with single wrap and double
wrap of SSWM respectively as compared to control specimen. The corresponding increase in strength for
800 mm height is 61% and 71% and for 1200mm height of column, it is 61% and 86% respectively.

Table 4 shows that with increase in height of the column specimens, the confined compressive strength of the
columns increases. The results show that confinement effect is more effective in column of aspect ratio 4 and 6.
The confinement with SSWM which has equal number of wires in both directions provided the additional
compressive, flexural and shear strength to the columns.
The comparison of theoretical strengths and experimental results in Table 5 shows that SSWM wrapped column
ultimate strengths match closely with CNR DT 200/2004 results. Table 6 shows the comparative ratios of axial
load capacity of columns from experimental and analytical studies. The standard deviation and coefficient
of variance of ratio of axial load capacities from experimental work and analytical studies is 0.026 and 2.48
which is minimum of all ratios indicating that results from CNR DT 200/2004 are consistent and closest to
experimental results.

7.0 GUIDELINES FOR INSTALLATION OF SSWM ON CONCRETE COLUMNS

i. Remove the plaster from the column. The concrete surfaces should be freshly exposed and free of
loose or unsound materials.

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 ii. The corrosion-related deterioration should be repaired before the application of any externally
bonded SSWM system.
iii. The cracks measuring 0.3mm or wider should be pressure injected with epoxy before SSWM
installation.
iv. All laitance, dust, dirt, oil, curing compound, existing coatings shall be removed. Localized out-of-
plane variations can be removed by grinding. Voids should be filled with resin based putty. Surface
preparation should promote continuous intimate contact between the concrete surface and the
SSWM system.
v. All surfaces to receive the strengthening system should be dry as water in the pores can inhibit resin
penetration and reduce mechanical interlock.
vi. The resin and hardener should be mixed in proportion 3:1 (A: B) for at least 3 minutes with a slow
speed electric drill. Precautions should be taken to consume the mixed material with in the pot life
of epoxy.
vii. Wet layup SSWM systems are installed by hand using a saturating resin, as per the manufacturer’s
recommendations.
viii. The wire mesh should be cut to provide 150mm circumferential overlapping. No specific alignment
requirements are necessary as required for other materials.
ix. Apply the epoxy paste with the help of thin steel plates. The SSWM should be tightly held close to
concrete with the help of mild steel binding wires or clamps for no air gaps. For proper bond, a
second coat of epoxy should be applied on mesh and finished smooth.
x. Successive wraps of SSWM should be placed before the complete cure of the previous layer of
resin.
xi. After curing of final coat of epoxy on the wrap, the columns should be plastered with cement mortar
of proportion 1:3 (1 cement: 3 sand) followed by acrylic water proof paint.

8.0 CONCLUSIONS
i. The SSWM 40 and Sikadur 30LP epoxy can be used for the structural strengthening of circular
concrete columns for higher axial loads even up to 86%.
ii. The axial strength of column increases with increase in number of wraps but at a lesser rate.
The confinement is more effective in columns with high aspect ratios.
iii. The CNR DT 200/200 guidelines can be used for design of SSWM wrapping on circular concrete
columns for axial strengthening with a suitable factor of safety.
iv. The columns having reinforcement corrosion with reduced load capacity can be strengthened
with this SSWM without increasing the size of the column.
v. SSWM locally manufactured steel wire mesh, available at cost of Rs. 592 per m2 is much
cheaper than CFRP (Rs.3500 per m2) and GFRP (Rs. 1800 per m2) meshes hence can be used
for structural strengthening of columns at much lesser cost.
vi. Guidelines provided for use of SSWM as wrapping material on circular concrete columns for
structural strengthening may be used for actual works at site.

REFERENCES
1. ACI Committee 440, Guide for the Design and Construction of Externally Bonded FRP systems
for Strengthening of Concrete Structures ,ACI 440.2R-08;2008
2. CNR-DT 200/2004 Guide for the Design and Construction of Externally Bonded FRP Systems for
Strengthening of Existing Structures, July 2004.
3. Woven wire cloth & perforated sheet product data sheet, Banaraswala metal Crafts(P) Ltd ,
Coimbatore; www.banaraswala.com.
4. Sikadur 30 LP, Product data sheet; Adhesive for bonding reinforcement.