A comparative numerical analysis of glued laminated timber beams reinforced with bars made of various materials

The use of fibrous composites to reinforce various structures is an increasingly common practice in construction. Wooden structures are commonly reinforced with composite materials. However, due to the lack of standard regulations for the design of reinforcements with the use of composites, many structural calculations are made in numerical analysis programs using the Finite Element Method (FEM). The article presents numerical calculations of glued laminated timber beams reinforced with various composite rods made using basalt, aramid, glass and carbon fibers. The stiffnesses and the normal stress distributions of the reinforced beam and the comparative, unreinforced beam were compared. The most effective reinforcement found uses carbon CFRP rods.