Technical guidelines on the use of Fibre Reinforced Polymers for strengthening of reinforced concrete structures

Fibre Reinforced Polymers (FRPs) have made deep in-roads into the structural rehabilitation industry and are gaining wide spread acceptance among engineers, agencies and authorities involved in the retrofitting of reinforced concrete structures. Use of FRPs for structural applications has gained momentum in the past decade due to the concerted efforts of FRP system developers/applicators and professional/engineering bodies in various parts of the world. Universities and research laboratories throughout the world have also played an important role in testing and development of FRPs for structural use. With the increasing demand, a spate of composite material suppliers has emerged proclaiming their spurious products, fabricated from an assortment of incompatible fabrics and resins, as valid structural composites. It has complicated the job of engineers to select a suitable and durable FRP system for their structural needs. On one hand, FRP system developers in various countries are busy pursuing their proprietary composite systems but on the other, the engineering societies and professional bodies in the respective countries are putting their efforts together in streamlining and standardizing the use of structural composites. With their efforts, several reports governing the use of FRPs have come up in the recent past to ease the work of engineers and specifiers. This paper aims at highlighting the salient technical guidelines on the use of FRPs on the basis of these reports. It covers various aspects of FRP retrofit involving specification, design, application and quality control. This information will not only be useful in the selection of a suitable FRP system but also its appropriate usage for a particular application.