ABSTRACT
The performance of fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites greatly depends on the in-service environmental temperature. In most of the structural applications, such as pedestrian bridges or decks of road bridges and other civil constructions, FRP pultruded profiles are used, but still the full potential is hindered due to the susceptibility of the mechanical properties to elevated temperature and fire. This chapter contains the details of the mechanical performance of FRP composites when exposed to various above-ambient and subambient temperatures. Initially, in-situ mechanical behavior is discussed in which the materials are tested at the given temperature in the testing machines, which are equipped with controlled environmental chambers. Then, effects of different nonequilibrium thermal loadings, such as thermal shock, thermal fatigue, and freeze-thaw have been presented. The effects of fire exposure on the composite performance has also been illustrated.
