Analytical Study on the Effect of Different Shear Reinforcement Shapes on Shear Failure Behavior and Shear Resistance Mechanism of RC Beams

The authors have reported from experimental investigation that the use of closed stirrups, U-shaped stirrups and rod-shaped reinforcements as shear reinforcements in reinforced concrete (RC) beams results in clear differences in internal crack patterns and maximum strength. In this study, simulations of the experimental beams were performed using a three-dimensional rigid-body spring model, demonstrating that the behavior observed in the experiments is a mechanical phenomenon that can be reproduced numerically. Using the stress distribution over the beam cross section obtained from the analysis, the beam and arch action components of shear resistance are decoupled and considered from the perspective of the shear resistance mechanism. Further, through analysis of additional cases, the role of the upper and lower horizontal legs of the shear reinforcement, the effect of end anchorages on rod-shaped reinforcements were clarified.