Guide for the Design and Construction of Concrete Reinforced with FRP Bars (ACI 440.1R-03)

This paper reports on the key features of the “Guide for the Design and Construction of Concrete Reinforced with FRP Bars” issued by the American Concrete Institute (ACI). For new construction, FRP bars have been used as the internal reinforcement in concrete members to replace conventional steel rebars for a host of reasons. The principles for design and construction were first established and proposed to industry in 2001. The third revision of the guide is now under preparation. The Existing Document In 2001, the American Concrete Institute (ACI) published the first guide offering recommendations for design and construction of FRP-reinforced concrete (RC) structures as an emerging technology (ACI 440, 2001). The document was re-issued with some minor changes in 2003 (ACI 440, 2003). At present, the ACI Technical Committee 440 is working on the third edition that presents some significant changes from the current document. The current and new ACI documents of reference only address non-prestressed FRP reinforcement. A separate ACI guide is devoted to prestressed concrete using FRP tendons.