Tensile behaviour of carbon fabric reinforced cementitious matrix composites as both strengthening and anode materials

Abstract Recently, a promising solution to corroded steel reinforced concrete structures was proposed in which a dual-functional carbon-fabric reinforced cementitious matrix (carbon-FRCM) composite is used for impressed current cathodic protection (ICCP) and structural strengthening (SS); this method is referred to as ICCP-SS. The tensile behaviour of carbon-FRCM must be understood for design purposes. In this study, the tensile characteristics of carbon-FRCM composites with different fabric reinforcement ratios were assessed to determine the strengthening capability of the materials. Then, using the composite as an anode material, the tensile behaviour of carbon-FRCM specimens subjected to anodic polarization in ICCP was evaluated. Direct tensile tests were conducted to obtain the tensile stress-strain behaviour of the carbon-FRCM specimens. By comparing the results from each case, the influences of different parameters on the tensile behaviour of the carbon-FRCM composites were evaluated, and useful information regarding the application of these materials in ICCP-SS was obtained.