Pultruded composite guardrail

Abstract

A pultruded composite guardrail is comprised of one or more layered reinforcement materials and a resin permeating the one or more layered reinforcement materials, the one or more layered reinforcement materials and resin forming a solid shaped guardrail or guardrail beam when the resin is cured. The shaped member may be thrie beam shaped and the resin used may be a poly-urethane thermoset resin. The guardrail may be used in a guardrail system comprised of one or more guardrails and one or more posts. The guardrail system may also include a spacer block attached to each post, an anchor attached to the posts, a splice plate coupling a plurality of the guardrails together, and a plurality of fasteners for joining the components of the guardrail system.

1 . A pultruded composite guardrail, comprising: 
 one or more layered reinforcement materials; and    a resin permeating the one or more layered reinforcement materials, the one or more layered reinforcement materials and resin forming a solid shaped guardrail member when the resin is cured.    
   
   
       2 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the guardrail is approved for use on the National Highway System as an NCHRP Report 350 TL-3 longitudinal barrier.  
   
   
       3 . The pultruded composite guardrail in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the shaped member is a thrie-beam member.  
   
   
       4 . The pultruded composite guardrail in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the resin is thermoset poly-urethane.  
   
   
       5 . The pultruded composite guardrail in accordance with  claim 1  wherein the one or more layered reinforcement materials comprises at least one of an E-LTMR-2808 mat, an E-LM-2205 mat, a NCX1501 mat ( 40 ), a NM1001 mat, an E-TTXM-3205 mat, a 62 yield roving, a 1 ounce OC mat, and a 1.5 ounce OC mat.  
   
   
       6 . A guardrail comprising a unitary composite pultruded thrie-beam member.  
   
   
       7 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 6  wherein the unitary pultruded composite thrie-beam member is comprised of one or more reinforcement materials set in a poly-urethane resin.  
   
   
       8 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 6  wherein the one or more reinforcement materials comprise, in order, an E-LTMR-2808 mat, an E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, an E-LM-2205 mat, a 1 ounce OC mat, an E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, an E-LM-2205 mat, and an E-LTMR-2808 mat.  
   
   
       9 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 6  wherein the one or more reinforcement materials comprise, in order, a NCX1501 mat, E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, an E-LM-2205 mat, a 1 ounce OC mat, a 1.5 ounce OC mat, an E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, an E-LM-2205 mat, and a NCX1501 mat.  
   
   
       10 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 6  wherein the one or more reinforcement materials comprise, in order, a NM1001 mat, a E-TTXM-3205 mat, a E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, a E-LM-2205 mat, a E-LM-2205 mat, a 62 yield roving, a E-LM-2205 mat, a E-TTXM-3205 mat, and a NM1001 mat.  
   
   
       11 . The guardrail in accordance with  claim 6  wherein the unitary pultruded composite thrie-beam member comprises one or more holes therein.  
   
   
       12 . A guardrail system, comprising: 
 one or more posts; and    one or more pultruded composite guardrails secured to the one or more posts.    
   
   
       13 . The guardrail system in accordance with  claim 12  further comprising at least one of: 
 a spacer block attached to each of the one or more posts, the spacer block for carrying one or more of the pultruded composite guardrails;    an anchor attached to at least one of the one ore more posts;    a splice plate coupling a plurality of the one or more pultruded composite guardrails together;    a plurality of fasteners for securing at least one of the one or more pultruded composite guardrails to the post, the spacer block to the post, the pultruded composite guardrails to the spacer block, the splice plates to the plurality of pultruded composite guardrails, the splice plates to the posts, and the anchor to the posts.    
   
   
       14 . The guardrail system in accordance with  claim 12  wherein the one or more pultruded composite guardrails is thrie-beam shaped.  
   
   
       15 . The guardrail system in accordance with  claim 14  further comprising a splice plate for coupling two or more of the pultruded composite guardrails together, the splice plate having a profile that substantially matches a profile of the pultruded composite guardrails.  
   
   
       16 . The guardrail system in accordance with  claim 12  wherein each of the one or more pultruded composite guardrails is of unitary construction and further comprises: 
 a first top section leg and a second top section leg integrally formed to opposing ends of a top section face;    a first middle section leg and a second middle section leg integrally formed to opposing ends of a middle section face; and    a first bottom section leg and a second bottom section leg integrally formed to opposing ends of a bottom section face, wherein the second top section leg and the first middle section leg are integrally formed to opposing ends of a top back member and wherein the second middle section leg and the first bottom section leg are integrally formed to opposing ends of a bottom back member.    
   
   
       17 . A method of manufacturing a pultruded composite guardrail, the method comprising: 
 pre-forming one or more reinforcement materials;    saturating the pre-formed reinforcement materials with a resin;    pulling the resin-saturated reinforcements through a pultrusion die;    heating the resin saturated reinforcement in the pultrusion die to solidify the resin; and    cutting the pultruded composite guardrail to length.    
   
   
       18 . The method in accordance with  claim 17  wherein the pre-forming further comprises: 
 supplying the reinforcement materials on bulk rolls;    combining the reinforcement materials; and    pulling the reinforcement materials through one or more pre-former gates.    
   
   
       19 . The method in accordance with  claim 17  wherein the saturating further comprises passing the pre-formed reinforcement materials through a resin bath.  
   
   
       20 . The method in accordance with  claim 17  wherein the pulling the resin-saturated reinforcements through the pultrusion die comprises: 
 forming the resin-saturated reinforcements into the a desired shape of the pultruded composite guardrail.