Hollow, composite-material rebar structure, associated components, and fabrication apparatus and methodology

• US 9,162,399 B2
• Filed: 08/22/2011
• Issued: 10/20/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Composite Rebar Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Composite Materials Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Gibson, Robert C., Ohnstad, Thomas S., Noble, Matthew H., Garber, Trent J., Hershberger, Thomas A., Hillman, John R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Miggins, Michael C
• Application Number:
  US13/215,199
• Publication Number:
  US 20120066994A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,520 Days
• Field of Search: 428/36.9, 428/36.91, 428/35.8, 428/447, 428/450, 428/36.4, 138/146, 523/091.3, 528/53, 528/34
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/52 Pultrusion, i.e. forming and compressing by continuously pulling through a die
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/526 Pultrusion dies, e.g. dies with moving or rotating parts B29C70/523 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/527 Pulling means
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/528 Heating or cooling
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/74 Moulding material on a relatively small portion of the preformed part, e.g. outsert moulding B29C70/845 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 70/742 Forming a hollow body around the preformed part
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 23/00 Producing tubular articles B29D24/00 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2009/00 Layered products
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2022/00 Hollow articles tubular articles B29L2023/00; pneumatic tyres B29L2030/00
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2023/00 Tubular articles B29L2024/00 takes precedence ; catheters B29L2031/7542
• CPC Class Codes: B29L 2031/10 Building elements, e.g. bricks, blocks, tiles, panels, posts, beams frameless domes B29L2025/00, doors B29L2031/724
• CPC Class Codes: E04C 5/03 with indentations, projections, ribs, or the like, for augmenting the adherence to the concrete
• CPC Class Codes: E04C 5/07 Reinforcing elements of material other than metal, e.g. of glass, of plastics, or not exclusively made of metal metal elements with non-structural coatings E04C5/01
• CPC Class Codes: E04C 5/20 of material other than metal or with only additional metal parts, e.g. concrete or plastics spacers with metal binding wires E04C5/168 takes precedence

Abstract

Elongate, composite-material, hollow rebar structure, along with associated components, related fabrication apparatus, and apparatus-implemented, rebar-structure-making methodology. The rebar structure has a long axis, and includes (a) an elongate, hollow core centered on that long axis, (b) an elongate, hollow sleeve having inner and outer surfaces, circumsurrounding the core along the core'"'"'s length, with the sleeve'"'"'s inner surface bonded to the core'"'"'s outer surface along the length thereof, and (c) longitudinally distributed, radial-dimensionality, external-purchase-enhancing structure formed unitarily with the sleeve'"'"'s outer surface along the length thereof. The bond existing between the core and the sleeve takes the form of a single-cure, reverse-temperature-gradient-cure, plastic-material, molecular bond.

Claims

1. Elongate, composite-material, hollow rebar structure having a long axis, and comprising

an elongate, hollow core centered on said axis and having an outer surface,

an elongate, hollow sleeve having inner and outer surfaces, circumsurrounding said core along the core'"'"'s length, with the sleeve'"'"'s said inner surface bonded to the core'"'"'s said outer surface along the length thereof, and

longitudinally distributed, radial-dimensionality, external-purchase-enhancing structure formed unitarily with the sleeve'"'"'s outer surface along the length thereof.

2. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein said core and sleeve are circularly cylindrical.

3. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein said external-purchase-enhancing structure takes the form of elongate ridge structure joined to and projecting radially outwardly from the sleeve'"'"'s said outer surface relative to said axis.

4. The rebar structure of claim 3, wherein said ridge structure is distributed in a manner disposed in a generally helical fashion winding effectively about said axis along the length of the sleeve'"'"'s said outer surface.

5. The rebar structure of claim 4, wherein said ridge structure includes an elongate, continuous, generally helically wind extending along the length of the outer surface in said sleeve.

6. The rebar structure of claim 4, wherein said ridge structure takes the form of a pair of elongate, continuous, generally helically paralleling winds extending along the length of the outer surface in said sleeve.

7. The rebar structure of claim 6, wherein said winds are homogeneous with said sleeve.

8. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein bonding structure existing between said core and sleeve takes the form of a molecular bond.

9. The rebar structure of claim 8, wherein said molecular bond is a single-cure, plastic-material bond.

10. The rebar structure of claim 9, wherein said single-cure bond is, additionally, a reverse-temperature-gradient-cure bond.

11. The rebar structure of claim 8, wherein said molecular bond is a reverse-temperature-gradient-cure, plastic-material bond.

12. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein bonding between said core and sleeve takes the form of a molecular and mechanical bond.

13. The rebar structure of claim 12, wherein said mechanical bond includes a roughened texture existing on the outer surface of said core in contact with the inner surface of said sleeve.

14. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein the core and the sleeve are formed of different, yet molecularly bondable, materials.

15. The rebar structure of claim 14, wherein said different materials include a common, thermoset plastic substance.

16. The rebar structure of claim 14, wherein said different materials each includes a thermoset substance.

17. The rebar structure of claim 1, wherein said core is a pultruded structure, and said sleeve is a continuous transfer-molded structure.

18. The rebar structure of claim 17, wherein said core is formed of plastic-resin-embedded, elongate, continuous, reinforcing fibers, and said sleeve and purchase-enhancing structure are formed of plastic-resin-embedded, randomly-ordered, chopped, reinforcing fibers in the form of BMC material.

19. The rebar structure of claim 18, wherein said elongate fibers are formed of e-glass, and said randomly-ordered, chopped fibers are formed of at least one of carbon, basalt and e-glass.

20. The rebar structure of claim 18, wherein the material in said sleeve is structured to be substantially inert to degradation in the contact environment of structural concrete, and furnishes an alkaline barrier for said core.

21. An elongate, composite-material sleeve employable as a jacketing structure for an elongate, hollow-rebar, central core having a long, core axis comprising

an elongate, hollow body formed with a long axis, and having a hollow interior adapted to receive, bondedly, such a core in a manner wherein said two long axes are substantially coincident.

22. The sleeve of claim 21, wherein said body includes, distributed along its length, an outside surface formed unitarily with longitudinally distributed and extending, radial-dimensionality, external-purchase-enhancing structure.

23. Elongate, hybrid, hollow rebar structure having a long axis, and comprising

an elongate, composite-material, hollow core having a hollow interior centered on said axis, and an outer surface,

an elongate rigidifier load-bearingly and cooperatively received within said hollow interior, and

an elongate, composite-material, hollow sleeve having inner and outer surfaces, circumsurrounding said core along the core'"'"'s length, with the sleeve'"'"'s said inner surface bonded to the core'"'"'s said outer surface along the length thereof.

24. The rebar structure of claim 23 which further comprises longitudinally distributed, radial-dimensionality, external-purchase-enhancing structure formed unitarily with the sleeve'"'"'s outer surface along the length thereof.

25. A composite-material rebar system comprising

first and second, elongate, hollow-interior, composite-material rebar elements having ends, and

a composite-material coupler disposed between, anchored to, and joining a pair of adjacent ends in said elements.

26. The rebar system of claim 25, wherein said elements have respective long axes, and said coupler orients said axes in a condition of nonalignment relative to one another.

27. The rebar system of claim 25, wherein the hollow interiors of said elements communicate with the elements'"'"' ends which are open, and said coupler is elongate, and possesses along its length a double-open-ended hollow interior which communicates with the hollow interiors in said elements.

28. The rebar system of claim 25, wherein said coupler is anchored to said elements via one of an element-received-in-coupler relationship, and a coupler-received-in-element relationship.

29. A composite-material rebar system comprising

an elongate, composite-material rebar element, and

a defined-function fitting joined to said element.

30. The system of claim 29, wherein said fitting is positionally-adjustably joined to said element.

31. An elongate, hollow, composite-material rebar comprising

an elongate, hollow core having a long axis, and formed of a heat-cured, thermoset, resin in which are embedded plural, elongate e-glass fibers having long axes substantially paralleling the core'"'"'s long axis,

an elongate jacket circumsurrounding said core along its length, formed of a heat-cured thermoset resin which is chemically compatible with the core resin, and in which are embedded plural, randomly distributed and oriented, chopped, e-glass fibers, and including (a) a tubular sleeve possessing an outer surface, and (b), extending unitarily along the length of said sleeve'"'"'s said outer surface, elongate, helical, radial-dimensionality, external-purchase-enhancing ridge structure.

32. The rebar of claim 31, wherein said ridge structure includes double-helix winds.