Annual Report 1998/1999

Field Applications Glass FRP Dowels Join Concrete Slabs Bishop Grandin Boulevard, Winnipeg, MB Approximately 26,000 vehicles per day travel over a test site for 780 glass FRP dowels in Winnipeg's Bishop Grandin Boulevard. The dowels are being used in place of epoxy-covered steel as joints between concrete slabs. Steel dowels corrode particularly in environments where salt is used for de-icing roads and highways. Once the steel fails through corrosion, the concrete chips and cracks, especially at the joint. Tests conducted in the laboratory at the University of Manitoba prior to the field installation indicated that the glass FRP dowel joints would be more effective (and longer lasting because they are non-corrosive) than the steel dowel joints. This is the first Canadian field application of FRP dowels in concrete pavement - a joint achievement of the City of Winnipeg, UMA Engineering and ISIS Canada. Consulting Engineer: UMA Engineering Owner: City of Winnipeg Cement-Filled FRP Piles Meet Demand for Increased Durability University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, MB For almost a decade, Lancaster Composite has manufactured Composite Piles-40TM for use in piers, docks, wharfs, and more. Now the company is collaborating with ISIS Canada on investigating and improving the performance of FRP concrete-filled piles. Lancaster's President, Robert Green, has noted an increasing demand for piles that are stronger and more durable. By examining the behaviour of piles under different load states at the University of Manitoba's W. R. McQuade Laboratory, ISIS Canada will obtain results that can be used to design superior FRP piles with a concrete core. The results of this testing program will complement the highway overhead sign structure project currently sponsored by Manitoba Highways and Transportation. Upgrading Underground Chambers Hydro-Québec, Sherbrooke, QC In Québec, more than 50,000 similar chambers have been installed over the last 30 years to house special devices used for Hydro-Québec electrical transmission lines. On an annual basis, two percent (approximately 1,000) of these underground steel-reinforced concrete chambers are so corroded they must be replaced. Last year, two chambers were constructed at the Université de Sherbrooke as a preliminary feasibility study for the application of FRP reinforcements. Ten more are being produced and outfitted with sensors for monitoring. The newly-built reaction wall at the Université de Sherbrooke will be used to test two of the chambers to failure. The remainder will be located throughout Québec. Consulting Engineer: Université de Sherbrooke Contractor: Lecuyer et Fils Ltee Owner: Hydro-Québec Tested to Failure Before Applied in the Field Maryland Bridge, Winnipeg, MB The 27-year-old girders of this bridge were analyzed and found to be deficient in shear capacity using the AASHTO code. A 1:35 scale model of the bridge was tested using three different types of carbon FRP and six configurations. The diagonal configuration proved to be the strongest and is the scheme that will be used to repair the Maryland Street Bridge later this year. Strengthening a Concrete Deck Slab Country Hills Boulevard Bridge, Calgary, AB One of the main problems with this aging bridge was that its thin deck would be over-stressed in lateral bending under full loads. Conventional strengthening methods presented logistical problems and so, an unintrusive strengthening method of applying carbon FRP strips was chosen. The concrete surface was roughened and then leveled with epoxy. Using a convex tool, epoxy was also applied to the strips, which were then rolled to remove the excess. One day later, the back of the strip was cleaned, sanded and coated with a binding agent before applying the overlay. Consulting Engineer: CH2M Gore & Storrie Contractor: Walter Construction Owner: City of Calgary Bending and Shear Strength Improved Sainte Émelie de l'Énérgie Bridge, Sainte Émelie de l'Énérgie, QC In the fall of 1998, this bridge was strengthened using methods tested in the Université de Sherbrooke Laboratory. Test beams were fabricated to evaluate various reinforcing schemes in bending and in shear, and were used to check the validity of the analytical procedures developed for this project. The four T-beams were reinforced in order to demonstrate the potential increase in strength as was requested. Durability of the composite material reinforcement was also included in the study. Specimens were tested to evaluate the influence of freeze-thaw or wet-dry cycles on both the composite material and the concrete-composite interface. Preliminary results obtained in this project confirm that the two kinds of cycles have a negligible effect on the composites themselves and on their bond to the support surface. Long-term durability tests continue. Sensing devices were installed including: 28 strain gauges, 10 thermocouples, 20 optic fibres with Bragg sensors and 8 with Fabry-Perot sensors. Sensor positions were selected in such a way that complementary readings could be obtained from the various instruments, and the data obtained from the experimental optic fibre sensors could be validated. Consultant: Ministère des Transports, Québec General Contractor: SOESCA Inc. Owner: Ministère des Transports, Québec Roof Beams Strengthened After Ice Storm Centennial Park School & Gabrielle Roy School, Chateauguay, QC Glass FRP sheets were used to strengthen 1,800 beams in two similar schools in Chateauguay, Québec that were damaged as a result of the 1998 ice storm. Following the storm, previously existing shear cracks in the roof beams widened and, in a few cases, partial failure occurred. The consultant chose to reinforce the webs of the prestressed prefabricated roof panels with glass FRP sheets supplied by Composite Retrofit International Inc. and applied by Construction Interlag. Consulting Engineer: Soprin ADS Contractor: Construction Interlag Owner: Chateauguay School Commission Accommodating Change Through New Technology West Windsor Pollution Control Plant, Windsor, ON Vector Construction Group used experience they gained working with ISIS Canada on strengthening Winnipeg's North End Water Pollution Control Treatment Plant, to upgrade a similar facility in Windsor. The installation of a new centrifuge pump necessitated strengthening beams, columns, and a slab. Carbon FRP sheets were applied in three configurations and then covered in a cement based mortar to match the concrete. Consulting Engineer: Stantec Consulting Ltd. Technical support provided by MBrace Design Group Contractor: Vector Construction Group Owner: City of Windsor, Department of Public Works Surveying A Containment Structure Gentilly-I, Gentilly, QC ISIS has signed an agreement to investigate the long-term strength and durability aspects of a decommissioned nuclear power plant in Québec. The objective is to efficiently extend the maintenance period from 40 to 100 years. ISIS Canada will use an FRP application to meet the long-term requirements. Owner: Atomic Energy of Canada Limited Rebuilding a Collapsed Breakwater Hall's Harbour Wharf, Hall's Harbour, NS ISIS Canada is working with Vaughan Engineering on preliminary designs for repairing a collapsed 50-metre section of a breakwater using FRP piles. It has already been shown that the cost of the innovative technology and materials will be no more than conventional repair methods. The long-term benefits, however, will be substantially more attractive, extending the wharf's service life from 30 years to between 60 and 80 years of minimal maintenance. An industry consortium including material suppliers, designers, a construction and a pre-cast company, have committed to providing services and materials either at cost or at a substantial reduction as a contribution to the field testing of this innovative repair methodology. Consulting Engineer: Vaughan Engineering Associates Ltd. Contractor: Waterworks Construction Ltd. Owner: Harbour Authority of Hall's Harbour

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