Driveability of FRP Composite Piling

Abstract

Fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites represent an alternative construction material without many of the performance disadvantages of traditional materials. Although composite materials present a number of difficulties related to pile driving, including low stiffness, high damping, and low strength, the use of FRP as a pile material can eliminate deterioration problems of conventional piling materials in waterfront environments and aggressive soils. This paper is a theoretical parametric study of the effect of various pile properties and soil conditions on the driveability of FRP composite piling in a typical waterfront site. All analyses performed show that composite piling could be driven to reasonable capacities for load-bearing piles. The parameters studied include the effect of pile modulus, damping ratio, unit weight, residual stresses, and hammer type on the efficiency of driving of FRP piling relative to conventional piling materials.