Experimental evaluation and design of unfilled and concrete-filled FRP composite piles, task 2 - FRP composite pile driving at the Richmond-Dresden bridge over the Kennebec River.

The overall goal of this project is the experimental evaluation and design of unfilled and concrete-filled fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composite piles for load-bearing in bridges. This report covers Task 2, FRP Composite Pile Driving at the Richmond-Dresden Bridge over the Kennebec River. FRP piles manufactured by Harbor Technologies LLC were driven at the Richmond-Dresden bridge over the Kennebec River (PIN 12674) on August 28, 2013. All piles were 40 feet long with an additional 5 inch steel driving shoe and have an outside diameter of 23.5 inches. Driving was conducted using a Delmag D36‐26 diesel hammer. This hammer has a rated energy of 90,560 foot-lb, a 7930 lb ram, and a variable fuel setting. The target ultimate load for the piles was 600 kips. This report documents the pile driving activities including pile analysis and observations. The piles were later pulled and shipped to the University of Maine for further laboratory testing and analysis.