Novel use of FRP composites in building construction

摘要

It has been shown that FRP composites can be used to produce dramatic building structures, economically and with several other benefits over conventional materials. However, to produce such economic solutions the design methodology used may need to change and effort needs to be spent on the optimisation of such structures. Existing design codes do not adequately cover either the FRP materials or the optimum structural solutions and this issue needs to be addressed to increase the acceptance of FRP materials. However, this should not prevent the use of FRP at the present time, as there is a wealth of data available and case histories to prove the adequacy of the materials.