TOUGH THERMOPLASTIC COMPOSITE BRIDGE DECK DEVELOPMENT

THE OBJECTIVE OF THIS EFFORT IS TO DEVELOP A MANUFACTURING PROCESS AND SAMPLE HARDWARE FOR A LIGHTWEIGHT, TOUGH COMPOSITE CLASS 70 TRIARCH BRIDGE DECK. CONTINUOUS FIBER REINFORCED THERMOPLASTIC COMPOSITES (TPC) ARE WELL SUITED TO THIS APPLICATION BECAUSE THEY OFFER REDUCED WEIGHT, IMPROVED IMPACT DAMAGE TOLERANCE, LOW CORROSION POTENTIAL, AND ARE SUITED FOR HIGH VOLUME MANUFACTURING METHODS. AFTER A THOROUGH REVIEW OF BRIDGE REQUIREMENTS AND MATERIAL AND MATERIAL FORMS AVAILABLE, A SUBSCALE SECTION OF TPC BRIDGE DECK IS TOOLED, FABRICATED AND FURNISHED TO THE GOVERNMENT FOR EVALUATION. ANTICIPATED, PHASE II FOLLOW-ON FUNDING WOULD INCLUDE DETAIL DESIGN, TOOL DESIGN, FULL SCALE PROTOTYPE FABRICATION, AND QUALIFICATION TESTING.