Stress Monitoring on GFRP Anchors Based on Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors

Glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bolts have been widely used in some applications of grouted anchors because of the advantages of better resistance to corrosion, high strength-to-weight ratio, low electromagnetic properties, and so on. This study presents a field test to assess the feasibility of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors in monitoring the stress profile of GFRP anchors during pulling test. Two GFRP anchors were fully instrumented with FBG sensors and then installed into the ground using a drilling and grouting method. To measure the stress profile along test anchors, seven bare FBG sensors were arranged in a single optical fiber and then embedded in the middle of GFRP bolts in the process of extrusion molding. The procedure for embedding bare FBG sensors into GFRP bolts is introduced first. Then, the axial forces and shear stresses that were calculated from the measurements of the FBG sensors are discussed. The field test results indicate that the embedded FBG technology was feasible to monitor the stress state of GFRP anchors during pulling.