Self-sensing Nanocomposite CnP—GFRP Rods as Reinforcement and Sensors of Concrete Beams

At present much attention is paid to the use of composite rods as alternative reinforcing element of concrete beams, due to their good corrosion resistance. Nevertheless, their elastic behavior, presenting scarce ductility, is a big concern. To overcome this drawback, among various solutions, one involves the use of innovative monitoring systems, to allow continuous structure monitoring. This article is aimed to present a hybrid self-monitoring nanocomposite material able to act as a reinforcing element and sensor in concrete. The sensitive part of such element consists of carbon nanoparticles in epoxy matrix. The monitoring is realized by performing electrical resistance variation measurements under stress. Hence, realized composite material rods were tested both inside and outside concrete and both the cases showed good self-monitoring performance, i.e., possibility to correlate electrical resistance variation to the applied stress.