Designing an Economical FRP System for Pipeline Rehabilitation

Carbon and glass fiber reinforced polymers (FRP) have been used for infrastructure rehabilitation for more than three decades, and applications in pipeline rehabilitation has gained momentum in recent years. The advantages these systems can provide include high strength, light weight, and ability to be installed on essentially any type of pipe material, size, and geometry. Nevertheless, particularly carbon fiber is an expensive material and if an FRP system is not designed properly the difference in the cost may offset the advantages it provides. This paper will present best design practices with respect to utilize FRP systems as a more economical alternative for pipeline rehabilitation. Particularly emphasis will be given to considering the residual strength of the host pipe and using a composite system, which enables achieving high ring stiffness without excessive layers of carbon fiber fabric.