Manufacturing and Characterization of Braidtruded Fiber Reinforced Polymer Rebar

摘要

Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) rebar can serve as a noncorrosive alternative to conventional steel rebar for use in concrete reinforcement. By combining pultrusion and braiding into a single manufacturing process called braidtrusion, FRP rebar consisting of both unidirectional and off-axis fibers can be produced. In this study, a variation on the braidtrusion process was introduced, utilizing an impregnation ring and dieless curing system to produce high quality FRP rebar in a continuous manner. The resulting rebar was characterized to assess the quality and consistency of the manufacturing process. Degree of cure, braid angle, cross-sectional area, and fiber volume fractions were measured, and a general examination of the rebar microstructure was conducted. In addition, analytical equations based on previous works were presented to predict braid angle and cross-sectional area of the resulting rebar based on manufacturing parameters. The predictions made using these equations were found to be in good agreement with the experimental results, and can be used to facilitate future design and manufacturing of FRP rebar. (C) 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers