Strengthening choices for the repair & retrofit of concrete bridge structures with FRP

At present there exist numerous, approved documents and guidelines across Europe, the US, Japan and Canada, giving detailed information on the various applications available that provide for the strengthening of concrete structures with Fibre Reinforced Polymers (FRP). Such guidelines offer a detailed overview of the principles involved in the design of strengthening for deficient beams, columns and slabs, but do not offer codified approaches for individual materials and techniques, or the necessary specialist bridge related criteria. The information and understanding gained from this study is intended for use in directing the generic approach to future FRP design strategies, through the unification of material, system & installation procedure selection and inspection & monitoring regimes. Software has been developed by the authors to provide a rule-based, logic-programmed 'FRP Strengthening System - Selection Toolkit' defining the extent of required superstructure strengthening following diagnosis and recommendation for pre-installation treatment of the defects and degradation established from analysis of assessment and inspection results. The design process protocol incorporated in the software, consciously targets the concerns of largely inexperienced engineers in this field, particularly those of graduate level training, whilst also attempting to meet the knowledge demands of the Project Engineer or Department of Transportation Investigating Official, responsible for compilation of a preliminary strengthening scheme proposal, for later submission to tender.