# Structural Behaviour of Concrete Deep Beams Reinforced with Aluminium Alloy Bars
## 5 Conclusions  
This study provides the first comprehensive FE-based analysis of AA RC deep beams. The experimental findings in the existing literature were employed to validate the FE model. The validated FE model gave the opportunity to conduct further parametric studies. The applicability and accuracy of the design models originally developed for deep beams reinforced with steel bars were evaluated for AA RC beams. The following findings can be drawn based on this paper:  
* The FE model based on the theoretical background of DSFM [33], which is a developed form of the MCFT [34], was built for AA RC beams. The FE model accurately reproduces the experimental results reported by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [4] with a mean value of 1.00. The FE model can be utilised for the further design of AA RC deep beams. * The findings indicated a clear trend in which shear force capacity increased with concrete compressive strength, confirming that higher compressive strength enhanced the resistance of AA RC beams to shear-induced cracking and failure. The shear force capacity increased from 124.1 kN to 181.4 kN, with increasing concrete compression strength from 20 MPa to 40 MPa. * The failure mode and structural response of AA RC beams were exhibited to be altered by both an increase and a decrease in the tension reinforcement ratio, suggesting a strong relationship between the reinforcement ratio and failure mode. * The findings on the effect of beam size designated that there was an inverse relationship between shear strength and the effective depth. The shear strength decreased from 2.95 MPa to 2.1 MPa as the effective depth increased from 175 mm to 350 mm. \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c} \hline
**Specimen** & \begin{tabular}{c} **V, FE** \\ **(kN)** \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{c} **V, ACISISIS** \\ **(kN)** \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{c} **V, Mau and Hsu** \\ **(kN)** \\ \end{tabular}  & \ \begin{tabular}{c} **V, ACISISIS/V, FE** \\ **(kN)** \\ \end{tabular}  & \begin{tabular}{c} **V, Mau and Hsu** \\ **V, ACISISIS/V, FE** \\ \end{tabular}  \\ \hline ID-1 & 62.0 & 62.3 & 56.6 & 1.00 & 0.91 \\ ID-2 & 78.4 & 93.4 & 77.2 & 1.19 & 0.98 \\ ID-3 & 90.7 & 124.6 & 97.4 & 1.37 & 1.07 \\ ID-4 & 63.0 & 62.5 & 56.6  
* The inverse correlation between the shear force and a/d ratio was also obtained. A reduction in the a/d ratio from 3.43 to 1.14 instigated an increase in shear force from 43.9 kN to 104.4 kN. This was also aligned with the fundamental shear mechanism in RC beams [32], where increasing the a/d ratio typically instigated a reduction in shear force capacity because of the transition from a shear to a flexure failure mode. * An increase in transverse reinforcement ratio from 0.12% to 0.84% instigated an enhancement in shear force capacity from 55.6 kN to 76 kN and from 62.2 kN to 83 kN for the AA RC deep beams with a tension reinforcement ratio of 2.93% and 5.98%, respectively. * Both the design code of ACI 318 [57] and the design model developed by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [56] predicted the shear force capacities of AA RC deep beams accurately, with an error of 3%. The standard deviations were 0.19 and 0.12, respectively. The design model developed by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [56] for beams reinforced with steel bars offers a more balanced approach and can be adapted to AA RC beams. Further validation against experimental data is required to confirm its broader applicability. * [PERSON] and [PERSON]'s [4] research examining AA RC deep beams was limited. Therefore, this study has provided insight into further investigations on AA RC beams. The main advantage of AA bars is corrosion resistance, and this property can also be improved by considering coating applications. For instance, AA bars offer an alternative to steel bars in situations where RC structures are exposed to a corrosive environment.