Design formula to evaluate the NSM FRP strips shear strength contribution to a RC beam

This paper presents the closing step of a synthesis process aiming at deriving, from a previously developed more complex model, a simple design formula to evaluate the shear strength contribution provided by a system of Near Surface Mounted (NSM) Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) strips to a Reinforced Concrete (RC) beam. The self-contained and ready-to-implement set of analytical equations and logical operations is presented along with the main underlying physical-mechanical principles and assumptions. The formulation proposed is appraised against some of the most recent experimental results and its predictions are also compared with those obtained by the two previous and more sophisticated versions of the same modeling strategy. Monte Carlo simulations are carried out in order to appraise the sensitivity of the NSM shear strength contribution prediction to the value assumed by the input parameters. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.