Originally published August 28 2005
Polymer military "bandages" can help repair U.S. bridges
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Long polymer "bandages," designed so that U.S. troops could repair or reinforce bridges to bear the weight of 113-ton military tank transport vehicles, now could quickly and inexpensively strengthen aging rural bridges and concrete culverts around the country.
Long polymer "bandages," designed so that troops could repair or reinforce bridges to bear the weight of 113-ton military tank transport vehicles, now could quickly and inexpensively strengthen aging rural bridges and concrete culverts around the country.
With initial funding from the Army Corps of Engineers, Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Lawrence Bankand his then-student, Anthony Lamanna, perfected these bandages, or fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) strips, which they patented through the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
In wartime, the strips could be key to keeping important transportation routes available, says James Ray, a structural engineer for the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center.
Fastening the strips to the bridge with a tool akin to a power nailer seemed like an obvious alternative.
The problem, however, was that existing strips, which contain only longitudinal fibers, wouldn't hold up when the fasteners punctured them.
They split, much like a dry board might crack when a nail hits the wrong place.
"When you attach with fasteners, you have to have different properties in the strip," says Bank.
"If you make a hole in the strip and you push on the hole, the weave allows it to carry that load," says Bank.
After the successful installation, Bank shared the technology with colleagues around the country, including those at the Center for Infrastructure Engineering Studies (CIES) at the University of Missouri, Rolla.
"These are structures owned by local communities, always strapped for maintenance funds and with small crews.
"We will strengthen three spans, each using a different strengthening method," he says.
"For the span where we will be using this method, we will use concrete screws, half of which will be epoxy coated to help prevent galvanic corrosion where the steel contacts the carbon fibers in the FRP strip."
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