• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.319-332
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• 2004

Due to their high strength to weight ratios and excellent durability, fiber reinforced polymer(FRP) is widely used in construction industries. In this paper, a shape optimum design of FRP bridge decks haying pultruded cellular cross-section is presented. In the problem formulation, an objective function is selected to minimize the volumes. The cross-sectional dimensions and material properties of the deck of FRP bridges are used as the design variables. On the other hand, deflection limits in the design code, material failure criteria, buckling load, minimum height, and stress are selected as the design constraints to enhance the structural performance of FRP decks. In order to efficiently treat the optimization process, the cross-sectional shape of bridge decks is assumed to be a tube shape. The optimization process utilizes an improved Genetic Algorithms incorporating indexing technique. For the structural analysis using a three-dimensional finite element, a commercial package(ABAQUS) is used. Using a computer program coded for this study, an example problem is solved and the results are presented with sensitivity analysis. The bridge consists of a deck width of 12.14m and is supported by five 40m long steel girders spaced at 2.5m. The bridge is designed to carry a standard DB-24 truck loading according to the Standard Specifications for Highway Bridges in Korea. Based on the optimum design, viable cross-sectional dimensions for FRP decks, suitable for pultrusion process are proposed.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Advanced Composite Structures
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.21-28
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• 2012

In this paper, we present the analytical study results pertaining to the buckling of the orthotropic plates and local buckling of structural compression members composed of orthotropic plate components. Fiber reinforced polymeric plastic (FRP) materials, have many advantages over conventional structural materials such as steel and concrete. The advantages of the FRP materials are high specific strength and stiffness, high corrosion resistance, right weight, etc. Among the various manufacturing methods, pultrusion process is one of the best choices for the mass production of structural plastic members. Since the major reinforcing fibers are placed along the axial direction of the member, this material is usually considered as an orthotropic (tranversely isotropic, more specifically) material. However, pultruded fiber reinforced plastic structural members have low modulus of elasticity and are composed of orthotropic thin plate components the members are prone to buckle. Therefore, stability is an important issue in the design of the pultruded FRP structural members. In this paper, the buckling of orthotropic plates and the local buckling of pultruded FRP structural members are investigated by following the previous research results and the local buckling strength of the member produced in the domestic manufacturer is found.