BTN 2013 / 001 — September 2014 LOE Mo) allele nt lalcelcerre ace) Ua) NX vicroads 2013/001 Composites for Strengthening of Bridge Structures Version 1.1 This Bridge Technical Note (BTN) focuses on the use of fibre reinforced polymer (FRP) composites for strengthening of both reinforced cast in-situ and precast concrete structures. Techniques for strengthening of structures are continually under development. This BTN provides design criteria and guidance based on the published Information available at the time of writing. Bridge components may require strengthening for a number of reasons: + Lack of flexural strength Inadequate shear capacity Lack of stiffness Poor ductility Poor durability Strengthening with FRP composites is one of a number of available methods. The designer must select the most appropriate method of strengthening based on a consideration of a number of factors including, but not limited to, mechanical performance, constructability, long term durability and availability of the strengthening material, FRP can be used to improve flexural, shear or axial strength or any combination of these, Methods of strengthening using FRP include: + External bonding of FRP composite sheets and strips to beams and slabs + Wrapping with FRP composites ~ for example in the external confinement of columns FRP strengthening has been used on a number of Victorian bridges, the most prominent example of which Is West Gate Bridge. Strengthening can be achieved with other methods and materials such as extemally bonded metal plates and external pre~ stressing, FRP composites are light in weight and easy to install and are now the most favoured material in many strengthening applications. The whole-oflife cycle cost of strengthening using FRP materials is very competitive with conventional methods and materials. In addition to speed and ease of handling, FRP also offers minimum. interruption to the use of bridges during strengthening, The most common fibres used in strengthening materials for external repair and strengthening are carbon, aramid and glass. The selection for particular applications depends on many factors including the individual properties, the type of component to be strengthened, loading history, temperature and moisture conditions and other environmental effects. In selecting the type of fibre to be used, consideration shall be given to such factors as chemical resistance, compressive strength, elastic modulus, and other factors such as impact resistance, resistance to ultraviolet light, fire resistance, and electrical conductivity etc. There are numerous FRP systems commercially available from various manufacturers. The properties of the FRP materials offered also vary from one manufacture to another. It is important that designers and users obtain the most recent technical data for the selected FRP system from the manufacturer. The FRP material properties reported by manufacturers are the minimum achievable values. Actual material properties shall be verified by independent testing if necessary. The purpose of the adhesive Is to provide a shear load path between the concrete surface and the composite material, so that full composite action may develop. The adhesives must be a thixotropic paste used to bond procured FRP composite laminate systems to the concrete substrate and provide the required shear load path between the concrete substrate and the FRP composite reinforcing laminate. If multiple layers of FRP composite laminates are required, these shall be bonded together with the selected adhesive. The adhesive shall be designed in accordance with VicRoads Standard Specification Section 688.04, The saturating resin shall be used to impregnate the reinforcing fibre fabric to fix it in place and must be capable of providing a shear load path to effectively transfer the load between fibres. The saturating resin shall also serve as the adhesive for wet lay-upsystems, and be capable of providing a shear load path between the previously primed concrete substrate and the FRP composite system. The saturating resin shall comply with VicRoads. Standard Specification Section 688.04. FRP strengthening is usually performed on structurally deficient or damaged reinforced and pre- stressed concrete structures. Structural assessment must be performed before strengthening is implemented. The assessment must include a Level 3 bridge inspection, @ review of existing design documents and a structural analysis. The Level 3 bridge inspection must include the following + Existing dimensions of the structural members * Location, size and cause of cracks and spall * Location and extent of corrosion of steel reinforcement + Quantity and location of existing steel reinforcement + Compressive strength of concrete + Soundness of concrete and concrete cover in all areas where FRP is to be bonded to the concrete If the characteristic strengths of the existing concrete, reinforcement or prestressing strand are not known, the designer must determine these parameters’ by testing as specified in VicRoads Standard Specification Sections 610 and 688. ‘The designer must take account of creep, sustained load, deterioration, ageing, temperature effects and any other effect that might influence the strength and stiffness of the strengthened structure. ‘The selection of a suitable FRP system depends on numerous factors including environmental, loading, durability and protective coating considerations. Environmental considerations concern effects such as alkalinity, acidity, temperature and electrical conductivity. For loading considerations, impact tolerance, creep rupture, fatigue and FRP strength and stiffness are of concern. Durability concerns hot- wet cycling, alkaline immersion, freeze-thaw cycling and ultraviolet exposure. ‘The materials and procedures for the proposed strengthening must be fully specified, including: * Design standards, supporting design criteria and proposed design approach * Identification of all requirements from standards and the criteria forming the basis of the design + The mode of failure at the ultimate limit state and measures to be taken to ensure that other modes of failure are precluded + The strength reduction factors to be adopted for the various modes of action + Remaining life of the structure and design life of the strengthening system * Quality assurance tests for fibre reinforced Composite materials used for strengthening the structure, Currently there is no design standard in Australia and universally accepted design rules or guidelines for the use of FRP in strengthening or rehabilitation. AS5100 (2004) does not currently include the strengthening of bridge structures using FRP composites. Some general design guidelines are available such as ACI 440 (2008), ISIS (2007), Italy CNR DT 200 (2004), fib 14 (2001) and TR 55 (2012). The design life of FRP strengthening shall be at least the remaining life of the strengthened structure. Provisions for repair and maintenance shall be considered in the design. Design loading for FRP strengthening at the serviceability and ultimate limit states shall be in accordance with the requirements of AS 5100 (2004). Design for flexural strengthening shall comply with and be consistent with the requirements of AS 5100 (2004) Part 5. FRP materials can be bonded to the tension face of beams or slabs to act as additional reinforcement, increasing the moment of resistance of the section’ Fibres must be parallel to the direction of the maximum tensile stress. The design concept for flexural strengthening with FRP Is essentially an extension of existing flexural strength theory with appropriate limit checks to account for possible FRP induced failure modes. The flexure failure modes that can occur for an FRP strengthened section is given below ‘crushing of the concrete in compression prior to yielding of the flexural reinforcing steel; ‘+ ylelding of the flexural reinforcement followed by FRP rupture; ‘+ yielding of the flexural reinforcement followed by concrete crushing; + shear / tension delamination of the concrete cover (cover delamination); and ‘+ FRP debonding from the concrete substrate If the failure mode governing the design cannot easily be identified, the strengthened section shall be checked for each of the above failure mechanisms and the worst case shall be assumed for design purposes. Design guidance for shear strengthening Is less well established than for flexural strengthening. Structures strengthened with FRP to increase shear ‘capacity can fail due to separation of the FRP from the concrete. The probabllity of this failure mode is reduced if a beam Is fully encased in FRP.If practicable, shear strengthening shall be achieved by wrapping FRP completely around a beam. However, if this is not possible (as is frequently the case with beam and slab bridges), the FRP wrapping shall be applied to the sides and either the top or underside of a beam. If it is not possible to continue the FRP around the top or the underside of a beam, bonding to the sides of beams only is possible although this is not encouraged. If it is not possible to wrap the FRP completely around a beam, consideration shall be given to the use of an FRP anchorage system. Specialist advice shall be sought in this case, Shear capacity of the FRP-strengthened concrete section, V, shall be determined by adding the contributions from the concrete, steel and FRP: Wy = Vet Vs + Vi ‘The contribution from the concrete and the steel can be determined in accordance with the design guidelines as described in 6.1. The area of longitudinal FRP reinforcement shall be ignored in the calculation of shear capacity, Use of design guidelines fib 14 (2001) and TR 55 (2012) are supported as primary references for analysis and design of shear strengthening using FRP. Designer and Proof Engineering for FRP strengthening of bridge structures shall be prepared by designers that are pre-qualified at Structures Complex level under the VicRoads Pre-qualification Scheme. Alternatively design and proof engineering may be undertaken by experienced person who has specialist knowledge of FRP materials and design methods and who have been approved by the Principal Bridge Engineer. ACI 440 (2008) Guide for the design and construction of externally bonded FRP systems for strengthening concrete structures, American Concrete Institute Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA NQvicroads AS 5100 (2004), Bridge Design, Standards Australia, Sydney, Australia Fib (2001) Externally bonded FRP reinforcement for RC structures, The International Federation for Structural Concrete (fib), Technical Report, Task Group 9.3, Bulletin No 14, Lausanne, Switzerland ISIS (2001)' Strengthening reinforced concrete structures with externally bonded fibre reinforced polymers, Design Manual No 4, The Canadian Network of Centres of Excellence on Intelligent Sensing for Innovative Structures, ISIS Canada Corporation, Manitoba, Canada Italy CNR DT 200 (2004)' Guide for design and construction of externally bonded FRP systems for strengthening existing concrete structures, TR 55 (2012) Design guidance for strengthening concrete structures using fibre composite materials, The Concrete Society, Surrey, United Kingdom Section 610, VicRoads Standard Specification, Victoria, Australia Section 688, VicRoads Standard Specification, Victoria, Australia MARIO FANTIN PRINCIPAL BRIDGE ENGINEER VicRoads For further information please contact: Principal Bridge Engineer 3 Prospect Hill Road Camberwell Vic 3124 Telephone: (03) 9811 8307 Facsimile: (03) 9811 8329 Emall mario fantin@roads, vic.gov.au Bridge Technical Notes are subject to periodic review and may be superseded