Flexural behavior of wet panel-to-panel groove-and-tongue joints provided with lapped U-bars.

• U-bars with a lap length of 15 times the bar diameter achieves the same load-bearing capacity as straight-through bars. • Groove-and-tongue joints have a positive impact on the bending performance of panels. • Established a Strut-and-Tie model for lapped U-bars. • Analyzed the interaction between U-bars and core concrete, and determined the calculation method for their contact height. A comprehensive experimental campaign was carried out to investigate the flexural behavior of wet joints provided with lapped U-bars connecting two precast concrete panels. Eleven assemblies were tested in 4-point bending. Nine assemblies had wet groove-and-tongue joints provided with U-bars, and different values for the overlap length, joint width, and concrete strength. As a reference, the remaining two assemblies had wet groove-and-tongue or flat joints reinforced with straight-through bars. All the assemblies but two were provided with water-stop strips. The test results show that a lap length of 15 times the bar diameter is sufficient to guarantee the same bending capacity as straight-through bars. Based on the deformations of the panels subjected to bending, a strut-and-tie model was developed to predict the flexural capacity of linear wet joints provided with lapped U-bars. The proposed model effectively predicts the flexural capacity of the assembly of two panels since the theoretical predictions and the test results differ by less than 10%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]