Finite element study of a pultruded fiber reinforced polymer residential house frame structure under hurricane wind loads

Constructing residential houses using pultruded fiber reinforced polymer (PFRP) materials represents an innovative approach developed in the housing industry. In this study, a detailed structural/stress analysis for a typical PFRP residential house frame structure subjected to various hurricane wind loads was conducted using the finite element method. A finite element model of the PFRP frame structure was constructed by the assembly of I-beam, corner post, and boxed beam components. A comparison for the structural performance of the PFRP frame structure was made with that of a conventional lumber frame structure under 130 mph wind speed loading condition. It was shown that the PFRP structure had a much smaller wind-load induced deflection and a much higher margin of factor of safety than the lumber structure.;Additional finite element analyses were further carried out on the PFRP frame structure under higher hurricane wind loads. Tsai-Wu failure criterion was employed to determine the on-set of the structural failure, and the Tsai-Wu parameter value was used to calculate the levels of factor of safety. It was concluded that the PFRP house frame structure in this study was able to sustain up to 180 mph hurricane wind loads.