A modified constitutive model for FRP confined concrete in circular sections and its implementation with OpenSees programming

OpenSees is a well-recognized open source platform with high compatibility, and it has a well-developed fiber element method to cope with nonlinear structural analysis. Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) confined concrete can effectively improve the seismic performance of concrete structures. However, sophisticated constitutive models for FRP confined concrete are not available in the current version of OpenSees. In this paper, after reviewing several typical FRP confined concrete constitutive models, a modified constitutive model for FRP confined concrete in circular sections was proposed based on Lam and Teng (2003)’s model with four main modifications including the determination of FRP rupture strain, ultimate condition, envelope shape, and hysteretic rules. To embed the proposed constitutive model into OpenSees is a practical solution for engineering simulation. Hence, the secondary development of OpenSees New UserMat was briefly demonstrated and a set of critical steps were depicted in a flow chart. Finally, with the numerical implementations of a series of FRP confined concrete members covering a wide range of load cases, FRP confinement types and geometric properties, the utility and accuracy of the proposed model compared with Lam and Teng (2003)’s model and new material secondary development in OpenSees were well validated.