Durability Assessment of 15- to 20-Year-Old GFRP Bars Extracted from Bridges in the US. I: Selected Bridges, Bar Extraction, and Concrete Assessment

Abstract

Glass fiber-reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars have been used in concrete structures as an alternative to steel bars due to their noncorrosive behavior. However, due to the lack of full understanding of long-term performance, their use as internal reinforcement is still limited. To evaluate the durability of in-service GFRP bars under natural exposure, a collaborative project including four organizations investigated the conditions of GFRP bars and their surrounding concrete from bridges with 15-20 years of service. The aim of Part I of a two-paper series is to describe the bridge structures, methods of extraction, and the results of concrete testing, wheras Part II focuses on GFRP bar performance. The extracted bars were tested for physical, mechanical, and chemical properties, and the surrounding concrete was evaluated for chloride penetration, pH, and carbonation depth at the level of reinforcement. Results showed that carbonation and chloride may have reached the depth of the GFRP bars. This paper discusses the process of extraction of the bars, including the location and type of the selected bridge, and the concrete tests performed in terms of procedure, results, and observations.

Department(s)

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

Bridges; Concrete durability; Concrete tests; Glass fiber-reinforced polymer; Reinforced concrete

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

1090-0268; 1943-5614

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2021 The Authors, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Apr 2021

Link to Full Text

Share

 
COinS