| Title: |
Apparatus for Efficient Strengthening of Pipes with FRP Laminates |
| Category: |
Industry |
| Intellectual Property: |
Student team assigns intellectual property control to company |
| Year: |
2009 |
| Semester: |
Fall |
| Sponsor Name: |
QuakeWrap, Inc. |
| Sponsoring advisors: |
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| Sponsor URL: |
http://www.QuakeWrap.com and www.PipeMedic.com |
| Sponsor Information: |
QuakeWrap, Inc. specializes in repair and strengthening of structures with Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) products. Please visit (www.QuakeWrap.com) and type “pipe” in the search box to become more familiar with the type of projects we do. Repair of large-diameter pipes is a multibillion dollar business; I recommend you read the following articles:
http://www.reinforcedplastics.com/view/3020/spring-loaded-pipe-lining-system/
and
http://www.pipemedic.com/Costa%20Rica%20Trenchless%20Pipe%20Project%20Description.pdf
|
| ITAR Restriction: |
No |
| Scope of work: |
After winning a national award of excellence for repairing pipes with application of a carbon fiber liner using the wet layup system, we have pushed the limit in this industry up by developing a patent-pending product called PipeMedic (see www.PipeMedic.com). This product is a high-quality plant-manufactured laminate that can reduce the time required to repair a pipe by up to 80%. The installation process for PipeMedic™ involves:
1) Applying a layer of epoxy to the back of the laminates and
2) Pressing the epoxy-coated laminate against the surface of the pipe.
This project is aimed at improving efficiency of installation of PipeMedic.
Suppose that we are installing 4-ft wide x 33-ft long pieces of PipeMedic™ as circular rings (or bands) inside a 10-ft diameter pipe, giving an overlap of nearly 1.5 ft. If we were to lay the piece of PipeMedic on the bottom (or outside) the pipe and apply the epoxy to it, at this stage, the epoxy-coated laminate is slippery and difficult to handle. Moreover, the epoxy-coated laminates can stick to each other and the epoxy may get on the workers’ clothes or rub off against the surface of the pipe. So, we would like to design a device that would assist with this procedure.
This project is to design and build a prototype device that would (at a minimum) consist of the following components:
a) A table under which the 4’x300’ roll of coil of PipeMedic is mounted
b) An area where the PipeMedic™ laminate is pulled up and a layer of epoxy is applied to its back
c) An apparatus that would allow the epoxy-coated PipeMedic™ to be coiled in a compact configurations without the epoxy-coated surfaces touching any thing
d) A ferris wheel like scaffold where the apparatus of part (c) above will be mounted and would help the workers to remove the epoxy-coated laminates and apply it to the inner surface of the pipe.
Items a) through d) are one way of achieving our objectives; we can certainly consider other solutions. |
| Project summary: |
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| Disciplines: |
Mechanical Engineering (4)
Industrial Engineering (1) |
| Skills: |
Mechanical Design
Design of Devices with Rotating Components |
| Additional resources: |
We have a warehouse behind our office (2055 E. 17th St.) that can be made available to you if you need additional space.
In addition, our engineers are available at all times to answer any questions you might have about the requirements of the system. |
| Key Contact Name: |
Prof. M. Ehsani |
| Key Contact Email: |
Mo@QuakeWrap.com |
| Key Contact Phone: |
791-7000 x 122 |
| Project URL: |
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| Mentor Name: |
Kevin Prodromides |
| Mentor Email: |
prodrok@hotmail.com |
| Mentor Phone: |
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