The University of Maine has partnered with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) through a program titled: Composite Materials for Transportation Infrastructure & Resilience. The research explored in this program furthers UMaine’s efforts to promote the novel materials required to enable bridge roadway lifespans to exceed 100 years with relatively low maintenance costs, especially in areas with highly corrosive environments. UMaine’s FHWA-funded research is segmented into five subtasks, learn more about this research below:
Task 1.0 FRP Composite Girder Connector Selection
This durable, lightweight, low maintenance, low cost, and long-lasting alternative bridge girder enhances our nation’s transportation infrastructure by allowing construction of bridges with 100+ year lifespans that require minimal maintenance.
Task 2.0 Durability: Composites Lifetime Prediction and Life Cycle Cost Analysis
To quantify the durability of certain commercially available composite material structural components with both long term and accelerated exposures to the elements to demonstrate these composite materials as viable alternatives to traditional steel and concrete building materials through durability evaluation and life cycle cost analysis.
Subtask 2a – Thermoplastic Durability Evaluation
Subtask 2b – 3D Printed Culvert Diffuser
Subtask 2c – Life Cycle Cost Analysis
Task 3.0 Thermoplastic Rebar Mechanical Testing
To finalize selection of optimum thermoplastic processing parameters, material properties and surface deformations and conducting mechanical testing of the #4 thermoplastic rebar. This work will also advance field bend practices that will result in consistently high-quality bends under field site conditions.
