| Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite materials have developed into economically and structurally viable construction materials for buildings and bridges over the last 20 years. FRP composite materials used in structural engineering typically consist of glass, carbon, or aramid fibers encased in a matrix of epoxy, polyester, vinylester, or phenolic thermosetting resins that have fiber concentrations greater than 30% by volume. They have been used in structural engineering in a variety of forms: from structural profiles to internal reinforcing bars for concrete members to strips and sheets for external strengthening of concrete and other structures. Depending on the form of the FRP product used in structural engineering, the FRP material is supplied either as a ready-to-use structural component such as a wide-flange profile or a reinforcing bar, or it is supplied in its constituent forms as dry fiber and liquid polymer resin and formed and cured in situ to create a structural component. These two forms should be familiar to structural engineers, as they have analogs in conventional structural materials such as steel beams or steel reinforcing bars which are supplied in ready-to-use form from a steel mill, or portland cement concrete, which is supplied in the form of cement, aggregate, and water constituents and is formed in situ to create a structural element.
The purpose of Composites for Construction is to provide structural engineering students, educators, and professionals with a code-based text that gives detailed design procedures for FRP composites for civil engineering structures. The emphasis of the book is on the design of structural members and structural systems that use FRP composites as one or all of the structural materials in the structure. The emphasis of the book is not on the design of the FRP composite materials themselves, and the book provides only a brief review of topics related to constituent materials, micro- and macromechanics of composite materials, and manufacturing methods of composite materials. It is important to emphasize that this book is self-contained and that no prior knowledge of FRP composite materials is required to use the book and to learn how to design with FRP composites in structural engineering. Fiberreinforced composite materials have been used for many decades in the aerospace, automotive, and the industrial and recreational products industries. Many excellent textbooks and reference books are available that cover the manufacturing, mechanics, and design of fiber composite materials. Nor does the book cover topics of structural analysis or structural mechanics, except where needed to explain design procedures or design philosophy. |
