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SOUTHFIELD—The 2023-24 academic year may be over, but at Lawrence Technological University, groundbreaking research never stops.
Or in this case, bridge-breaking research—of the most innovative kind.
Last week, a mixer truck full of high-strength concrete delivered several cubic yards of the material to LTU’s Nabil Grace Center for Innovative Materials Research (CIMR). The concrete was placed into a specially shaped formwork that—once the concrete hardens—will turn it into an advanced bridge beam, prestressed and reinforced with carbon fiber composite (CFCC) strands instead of the steel strands traditionally used in highway bridges.
The carbon fiber is not only stronger than steel, it never rusts—leading to bridges that can last a century. That’s the lifelong advanced research goal of Nabil Grace, dean of the LTU College of Engineering and the university’s Vice President of Research.
Supervising the pour was Marc Kasabasic, project engineer in the College of Engineering’s Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering. He said the 30,000 pounds of concrete will become a two-span bridge beam, covering the entire width of a freeway with supports on either end and a support in the middle. That, Kasabasic said, will speed up bridge construction.
Testing on the bridge beam will begin in late May, once it fully hardens. The tests will include loading under various conditions. The Grace CIMR has specialized equipment that can put more than 200,000 pounds of fatigue and dynamic force on a single CFCC-reinforced bridge beam, far more load than would be placed on a single bridge beam in real-world applications, in order to test the beams’ unique strength and longevity.
This three-year research project is supported by the Michigan Department of Transportation and the Federal Highway Administration. Several undergraduate and graduate students are heavily involved in this unique research project. The students are gaining significant exposure to the design and use of advanced materials that can be deployed in long-lasting, corrosion-free highway bridges.
The Grace CIMR also has a boxcar-sized fire and loading chamber that can test materials at temperatures of up to 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit under various loading conditions, and an environmental and loading chamber large enough to fit a Humvee that can create temperature and precipitation conditions from minus 40 degrees to plus 180 degrees Fahrenheit. The Grace CIMR cost $11 million to build, with the largest share of that funding coming from the U.S. Army. The 7,200-square-foot center, with a 30 foot ceiling and a heavy duty crane to move around large objects like bridge beams, opened in 2008.
Lawrence Technological University is one of only 13 private, technological, comprehensive doctoral universities in the United States. Located in Southfield, Mich., LTU was founded in 1932 and offers more than 100 programs through its Colleges of Architecture and Design, Arts and Sciences, Business and Information Technology, Engineering, and Health Sciences, as well as Specs@LTU as part of its growing Center for Professional Development. PayScale lists Lawrence Tech among the nation’s top 11 percent of universities for alumni salaries. Forbes and The Wall Street Journal rank LTU among the nation’s top 10 percent. U.S. News and World Report list it in the top tier of the best Midwest colleges. Students benefit from small class sizes and a real-world, hands-on, “theory and practice” education with an emphasis on leadership. Activities on Lawrence Tech’s 107-acre campus include more than 60 student organizations and NAIA varsity sports.
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