Analytical Investigations and Design Implications of Seismic Response of a Two-Span ABC Bridge System

Despite the numerous advantages that accelerated bridge construction (ABC) offers, it has not been embraced in moderate and high seismic areas. This is due to insufficient research data investigating the effect of interaction between ABC connections and prefabricated components, guidelines for their seismic design, as well as the reliable analytical modeling methods for ABC bridges. The current study covers the analytical investigations of a two-span bridge system with six ABC connections tested on shake tables at the University of Nevada, Reno to address these issues. The analytical framework of the study comprised two phases: Pre-test analysis helped in estimating the design forces for preliminary design of components and determining input ground motions and the test loading protocol. As part of the post-test analysis, response of the OpenSees computational model with actual material properties and shake table motions was compared with measured response of the bridge model. This computational model was adequate in capturing the overall seismic response of the bridge model. The effects of the vertical ground motions and bi-axial excitations on the seismic response of bridge elements and ABC connections were investigated and it was found that some of the response parameters can be significantly affected by near-fault earthquakes. Design implications were developed based on the results of the shake table test, previous studies on the connections, and the parametric studies. The report also presents design guidelines for the rebar hinge pocket connection and hybrid grouted duct connection.

  • Record URL:
  • Supplemental Notes:
    • This research was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Transportation, University Transportation Centers Program.
  • Corporate Authors:

    Florida International University, Miami

    Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
    Miami, FL  United States  33174

    Accelerated Bridge Construction University Transportation Center (ABC-UTC)

    Florida International University
    10555 W. Flagler Street
    Miami, FL  United States  33174

    Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology

    University Transportation Centers Program
    Department of Transportation
    Washington, DC  United States  20590
  • Authors:
  • Publication Date: 2019-4

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Edition: Final Report
  • Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
  • Pagination: 106p

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01719197
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Report/Paper Numbers: ABC-UTC-2013-C3-UNR05-Final
  • Contract Numbers: DTRT14-G-UTC41
  • Files: UTC, TRIS, ATRI, USDOT
  • Created Date: Oct 7 2019 4:23PM