Comparison of earthquake behavior of reinforced concrete minarets using fiber‐reinforced polymer composite

SUMMARY This paper presents the comparison of the earthquake behavior of reinforced concrete (RC) minarets using fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite. A Turkish-style RC minaret with two balconies of a mosque located in Trabzon, Turkey, was selected as an application. A 3D finite element model of the minaret was created using ansys finite element program to determine the earthquake behavior. The earthquake behavior of the minaret was investigated using the 1992 Erzincan earthquake ground motion record. Also, the cylindrical body of the minaret (below the first balcony, between two balconies and above the second balcony) was wrapped by four layers of FRP, and earthquake behavior was determined. Total thickness of the FRP was selected as 6.0 mm. At the end of the study, earthquake responses of the RC minaret such as displacements and maximum–minimum principal stresses before and after using FRP composite were compared with each other. It was seen from the earthquake analyses that using FRP is very effective on the earthquake responses of the minaret. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.