WRAPPING PROCESS FOR BUILDING COMPONENTS MADE OF GLASSFIBER-AND TEXTILE-REINFORCED CONCRETE

Abstract

In the research project WiFaPu (wrapping process for highly fiber-reinforced concrete using the example of a pump sump) a wrapping process has been developed that combines the advantages of glassfiber-reinforced concrete and textile-reinforced concrete in terms of manufacturing processes and composite load-bearing behavior. In this process, a fine-grained concrete is sprayed with chopped-in short fibers on a carrier sheet and the textile reinforcement to produce a thin glassfiber-and textile-reinforced concrete layer with a defined thickness. This layer is continuously wrapped up onto a formwork to obtain a pump sump with an arbitrary cross-sectional thickness. The paper reports on the challenges in the development of the wrapping process and the associated coordination of the material components to produce durable members with monolithic blow-hole cross sections, acceptable surfaces and a reduced CO2 footprint. Pump sumps are produced as demonstrator components of the process. Their load-bearing capacity as well as their suitability for use are investigated in component tests. According to the experimental load tests, components with a high load-bearing capacity are produced. Filling tests show the overall high-water impermeability of the thin-walled components. This is made possible by fine-grained concrete with low water penetration depth and very small crack widths.