Composite rod for concrete reinforcement and monitoring

During the last five years, the Fibrous Materials Research Group – University of Minho have been involved in the development of a new composite material for the replacement of steel reinforcement in construction, and at the same time, to work as a structural monitoring system.

This innovative material is a hybrid composite rod based on a polymeric matrix reinforced with a mixture of glass and carbon fibres.
The rod is surrounded by a shell composed of braided polyester fibres, which provides a better adhesion to concrete.

At the present time, the project is in the validation stage, since the material is being tested in real scale concrete structures.