Reuse of End-of-Life CFRP EBR Strips as Prestressing Reinforcement for Concrete Railway Sleepers
摘要
Externally bonded CFRP strips have seen exponential growth in their use since their introduction in structural strengthening and are nowadays a mainstream material for extending the service life of deficient structures. The first CFRP-strengthened structures have already exceeded three decades of extended lifespan but –inevitably– some of them will have to be decommissioned in the not-too-distant future. Since the number of strengthened buildings reaching their end of life will increase over the years, it is crucial to consider strategies for managing CFRP waste from decommissioned structures. This is particularly due to stringent legislation regarding construction & demolition waste, as well as the urgency for reducing the environmental footprint of construction materials in general. Considering that recycling of thermoset CFRPs is very challenging and the emerging technologies for carbon fibre recovery are complex, energy demanding, and practically downcycling processes, CFRP reuse seems to be currently the most viable pathway to improve the sustainability and circularity of these highly durable structural materials. This paper proposes the reclamation of EBR strips from end-of-life strengthened structures and their reuse as internal reinforcement in new precast concrete elements. Proof-of-concept trials of reclaiming bonded CFRP strips from concrete substrates are presented, along with a study of the bonding performance of reclaimed strips when embedded in cast concrete. Furthermore, the development of sustainable railway sleepers made of recycled aggregate concrete and internally prestressed with reused CFRP strip tendons is presented, as suitable candidate precast elements for the circular use of concrete demolition waste and reclaimed CFRP reinforcement.