|
|
Categories
» Research and Development
» Universities and Goverment Organisations
| Textile Reinforced Concrete for Building Applications using Carbon firbes |
| Country: |
Germany |
| Link to your website: |
http://www.tu-dresden.de/...u/ |
Description:
Scientists at the Technische Universität Dresden/Germany have been developing an innovative composite material – “textile reinforced concrete“ – which is to serve for the structural reinforcement of buildings. For seven years now, more than 50 scientists from eight institutes have been collaborating in a research project entitled “Textile Reinforcements for Structural Strengthening and Repair“.
The first bridge was build at the Landesgartenschau 2006 in Oschatz/Germany.
Another 16 m long bridge is currently beeing build in Kempten in the Allgäu.
The bridge will be finished Mai 2007 .
The focus of the scientists has mainly been on the structural reinforcement of buildings with the help of textile reinforced concrete. The benefits of the new composite material are obvious: Concrete bears up under great pressure. However, since this is not true for tensile loads, the concrete has to be reinforced, using steel. Yet because of the steel’s tendency to oxidise it has to be covered with a concrete layer sufficiently thick so the oxidisation is prevented. As a consequence of construction, the combination of both concrete and steel creates a particular thickness corresponding with a certain weight. Because of this, experts have been trying for many years to use alkali-resistant glass fibres instead of steel in order to produce slim, light-weight and non-corrosive structures.
Since the first project, where glass fibres were used, changes from glass to carbon have been developed because the price of carbon is getting more and more favourable nearly every day.
The new bridge will have a wall thickness of only 3 centimetes reducing significantly. Due to non corrosive properties, coatings are not necessary to protect this new concrete. |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
