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The epoxy-bonded fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) technique has been attracting more attention for repairing steel structures. In this paper, cracked steel plates repaired with FRP laminates were investigated with the finite element (FE) method. Three different FRP configurations designed with equivalent tensile stiffnesses were employed to repair cracked steel plates to determine the best FRP configuration for extending the crack growth life. The stress intensity factor (K) and the crack growth life of FRP-repaired specimens were compared, and the parameters influencing the repair effectiveness were analyzed. The results showed that FRP configurations have an obvious effect on K and the crack growth life. Configuration 1 was more effective than Configuration 2. The superiority of Configuration 1 over Configuration 2 was more evident with an increase of FRP thickness and/or initial crack length, but the superiority decreased with a thicker adhesive thickness and/or a larger local debond size. However, a comparison between Configuration 1 and Configuration 3 was highly dependent on FRP thickness, initial crack length, FRP width arranged in Configuration 3, and local debond size. Based on limited analyses of the three FRP configurations, FRP Configuration 1 is recommended for practical engineering applications when the fatigue cracks of steel members are similar to the center crack. Finally, two additional investigations were recommended for future study.
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Wang et al. (2013) studied this question.
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