DESIGN OF GFRP-RC COLUMNS WITH THE NEW ACI 440.11-22 CODE

The American Concrete Institute has recently codified requirements for design of concrete structures reinforced with GFRP bars. ACI Code 440.11-22 is written in mandatory language that can be adopted by building codes or referenced by licensed design professionals and building officials. Design of GFRP-RC members follows the basic design philosophy from steel-RC, modified to account for both the lower stiffness and absence of yield in GFRP bars. This paper discusses design of GFRP-RC columns, highlighting differences from what is encountered in design of steel-RC columns and identifying design issues that may result when implementing the new GFRP-RC Code requirements.