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We present a combination of three dimensional (3D) solid elements and rotation-free beam elements for non-linear analysis of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) of rebars. The matrix material is modelled by 3D solid elements while the fibers are modelled with rotation-free beam elements. The absence of rotation variables in the beam elements allows the straightforward coupling of 3D solid and beam elements using a formulation with displacement nodal degrees of freedom only. Both solid and beam elements are formulated in an updated Lagrangian description. The behavior of the matrix and the fiber material are modelled with an elastic-damage model. The efficiency and accuracy of the combined 3D-beam element formulation are verified in examples of application to the analysis of FRP rebars up to fracture in axial, bending and shear tests for which experimental results are available., Peer Reviewed, Postprint (published version)

This paper presents a plane beam element without rotational degrees of freedom that can be used for the analysis of non-linear problems. The element is based on two main ideas. First, a corotational approach is adopted, which means that the kinematics of the element is decomposed into a rigid body motion part and a deformational part. Next, in the deformational part. the local nodal rotations are extrapolated as a function of the local displacements of the two nodes of the element and the first nodes to the left and right of the element. Six numerical applications are presented in order to assess the performance of the formulation., QC 20100525