The last decades have been marked by the steady replacement of steel with FRP products across many industries. This process is most noticeable in the construction niche. Qualities of fibre-reinforced polymers, such as corrosion stability, high tenacity, as well as thermal shock resistance have proved the efficiency of FRP materials in the construction field, especially in harsh and marine environments.
What Is FRP Rebar?
As the name implies, FRP composites consist of fibres strengthened with a special polymer matrix (resins). At present, various resins are used for manufacturing composites in order to address specific requirements of dedicated applications, be it construction, agricultural, or chemical sectors. Matrix serves for transferring load between fibres, ensuring composites’ compression strength, and protecting fibres from environmental factors.
Composite-Tech is a renowned FRP rebar production lines manufacturer. Given the continuous research and optimization of manufacturing technology, Composite-Tech has rightfully earned its leading position in the market. As of now, FRP production represents a profitable business with minimal capital expenditures and a short recoupment period.
FRP Rebar Manufacturing
In the early days, the composite manufacturing process was complicated and time-consuming. Implementation of advanced technologies has revolutionised the situation - automated FRP production lines are easy to install and maintain. The entire process of composite manufacturing is streamlined and requires minimal human interference.
FRP composites manufacturing includes several key stages:
1. Fibres, or strands, are soaked in a reservoir with a special resin consisting of polymers. As a result, you obtain “roving”.
2. Then roving is shaped into bars of the required diameter. Before the bars are hardened, they are treated in the polymerization chamber at a given temperature.
3. Next, bars should get their ribbed surface and pass through the drying chamber for the resin to be polymerized.
4. Finally, FRP rebar passes through the cooling chamber and is cut into specified sections or coiled.
Advantages of FRP Rebar
When compared to steel rebars, FRP rebar use ensures the following advantages:
1) Resistance to chemical reagents and corrosion: Non-corrosive nature of composites makes them the optimal choice for infrastructural projects in aggressive environments, for instance, for marine facilities, bridges, wastewater reservoirs and chemical facilities.
2) Lightweight: (4 times lighter than steel.) Construction projects can be completed faster due to the lighter weight of FRP compared to steel — composite rebar is easier in transportation & installation and does not require heavy machinery to be uploaded, unloaded, or installed.
3) Low thermal and electrical conductivity: The composition of the material (fibres and resin) explains its qualities: compared to steel, composites are bad conductors of electricity and can be successfully implemented for projects where steel will impose limitations in terms of safety.
4) Strength: The overall strength of a construction is the key parameter determining the safety and lifespan of any facility, be it residential or industrial. The use of FRP rebar in concrete constructions prolongs the lifetime and safety of buildings due to the higher strength of composites compared to steel.
5) Radar transparency: Infrastructural projects, most notably in the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors, require the implementation of dedicated materials to prevent interference in the operation of highly sensitive equipment.
6) Cost-efficiency: Despite higher initial investments, FRP rebar has proved to be cost-efficient due to lower transportation costs, low maintenance, and longer lifespan.
7) Sustainability: The composite manufacturing procedure and lower transportation load ensure reduced greenhouse effect and result in higher overall sustainability compared to the production and implementation of conventional materials. The University of Miami and the Department of Transportation of Florida have assessed the life-cycle of a bridge in terms of sustainability: the use of FRP for the construction of a bridge (57*18) lowers global warming potential by 26%, given the 100-year lifespan of a structure.
Advantages of using FRP Rebar in Construction
The aforementioned characteristics of FRP rebar are especially advantageous in the construction field. Companies working in the sector have to deal with the corrosion of metal rebar and its impact on the entire structure, its strength, life cycle, and maintenance. Hence, many construction enterprises shift to FRP as a better and more viable option, especially in severe environments. As a result, concrete structures have a longer lifespan as they are less prone to deterioration. Additionally, fortified resins extend the endurance of concrete structures in conditions with high temperatures and high moisture content.
Many countries, including UAE, USA, UK, Canada, Japan and many others, have launched state-regulated guides on implementation of FRP products in construction engineering. The list of countries has been continually expanding and the application of composites in industrial and civil engineering has become a global trend.
Large-scale participants of the construction sector, both governments and private enterprises, recognize superior qualities of composites in comparison to steel and expand FRP implementation for diverse infrastructural projects to prolong their endurance, particularly in regions or environments where continuous corrosion or structural degradation due to high temperature or chemical substances generate a negative impact on the economy and environment.
Future of FRP Rebar within the Construction Sector
With a growing number of researches confirming the benefits of application of FRP instead of steel in many fields, businesses realise the superior qualities of composites, including cost-efficiency and environmentally-conscious manufacturing, in many niches of civil engineering, such as tunnels, preservation of historic landmarks, mining, offshore and chemical facilities. Composite rebar has proved to be an efficient alternative to conventional rebar in road building — corrosion-resistant and four times lighter than steel, composite rebar has an optimal strength-weight ratio. Infrastructural projects are implemented faster and require fewer resources; sustainable FRP manufacturing practices promote a greener planet given the reduced greenhouse effect.
Implementation of composites in the infrastructure engineering niche has been gradual; however, the last decades have been marked by a number of global researches of composites’ technical characteristics, development of international standards and optimised product features, and reduction of production and installation expenditures. This explains the continually growing penetration of FRP across various sectors, including civil and industrial engineering.
As the market requirements for composite products grow notably, FRP rebar production represents an intelligent investment into a profitable business. Worldwide implementation of composites in diverse infrastructural projects ensures rapid time-to-value of investments.
