Lateral Load Distribution for Steel Beams Supporting and FRP Panel




1.1 Introduction

FRP is a composite material consisting of fibers made out of materials such as carbon or glass, bonded together using an epoxy-polymer. Although FRP has been used for over half a century in Aerospace Engineering applications, its use is generally new is other engineering disciplines.

The most common form of FRP in Civil Engineering is found in pultruded shapes that can be used as structural materials. More recently FRP honeycomb decks have been used to replace existing deteriorated bridge decks. These new FRP decks have several advantages such as a high strength to weight ratio, great weather resistance, and minimal construction time.

The high strength-to-weight ratio allows bridges to increase their load capacity since the FRP will allow for additional live loads due to a reduction in dead loads. FRP is extremely resilient against weather and will not deteriorate nearly as quick as other materials such as steel in high sulfate environments. The time required to replace an existing bridge deck with an FRP deck is very small, taking as little as a day, compared to the weeks it could take to replace an existing bridge deck with a new concrete deck. Consequently, although FRP costs substantially more than concrete, the reduced labor costs and time requirements more than compensate for the additional material costs, translating into overall cost savings in bridge construction. States that have implemented FRP include: Kansas, Missouri, West Virginia, New York, Colorado, Ohio, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.


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