Complete moment-curvature relationship of reinforced normal- and high-strength concrete beams experiencing complex load history

The moment-curvature relationship of reinforced concrete beams made of normal- and high-strength concrete experiencing complex load history is studied using a numerical method that employs the actual stress-strain curves of the constitutive materials and takes into account the stress-path dependence of the concrete and steel reinforcement. The load history considered includes loading, unloading and reloading. From the results obtained, it is found that the complete moment-curvature relationship, which is also path-dependent, is similar to the material stress-strain relationship with stress-path dependence. However, the unloading part of the moment-curvature relationship of the beam section is elastic but not perfectly linear, although the unloading of both concrete and steel is assumed to be linearly elastic. It is also observed that when unloading happens, the variation of neutral axis depth has different trends for under- and over-reinforced sections. Moreover, even when the section is fully unloaded, there are still residual curvature and stress in the section in some circumstances. Various issues related to the post-peak behavior of reinforced concrete beams are also discussed.