STRUCTURAL APPLICATIONS OF COMPOSITE MATERIALS TO HIGHWAY TUNNELS

Highway tunnels constructed of concrete enclosed by a double-wall tubular composite structure are shown to be economically feasible and merit serious attention by planners of advanced transportation methods that must contend with water crossings. Modern techniques for mechanically coupling and sealing tubular composite structures are shown to now enable composite materials to compete with welded steel joints in strength and long-term service. Engineering properties and commercial applications of the new class of twined-strand unidirected composite materials are presented along with cost and performance comparisons between composites and identical pipe and tank structures made of steel. A detailed engineering solution to the problem of providing an affordable fixed transportation link between Europe and Africa across the Strait of Gibraltar is presented. This example shows how structural composites can be used with concrete to fabricate the type of highway tunnel envisioned as an inevitable adjunct to conventional approaches used to solve current and future transportation problems.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1989/1223/1223-013.pdf
• Record URL:
  https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=STRUCTURAL+APPLICATIONS+OF+COMPOSITE+MATERIALS+TO+HIGHWAY+TUNNELS&author=C.+Kaempen&author=C.+Kaempen&publication_year=1989
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/0309048206
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This paper appears in Transportation Research Record No. 1223, Bridge Design and Performance and Composite Materials. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
• Authors:
  • Kaempen, C E
  • Kaempen, Charles E
• Publication Date: 1989

Media Info

• Features: Figures; Photos;
• Pagination: p. 107-116
• Monograph Title: Bridge design and performance and composite materials
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 1223
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Composite materials; Composite structures; Costs; Couplers; Performance; Properties of materials; Sealing (Technology); Tubular structures; Underwater construction; Underwater structures; Vehicular tunnels
• Old TRIS Terms: Highway tunnels; Sealing
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Finance; Highways; Materials; I24: Design of Bridges and Retaining Walls;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00494750
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309048206
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Jun 30 1990 12:00AM