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Large-Scale Flume Tests of Riprap-Apron Performance at a Bridge Abutment on a Floodplain

Lab tests using a large-scale model of a spill-through bridge abutment led to important findings about the performance of a riprap apron as an abutment scour countermeasure. Riprap stone is widely used for protecting side slopes of embankments against erosion, and several design guidelines are available in the literature. In contrast, only a few guidelines exist for the design of a riprap apron around an abutment. These guidelines focus only on the armoring effect of riprap, neglecting other effects. This study shows that apron performance involves several mechanisms: armoring the bed, dissipating large-scale turbulence shed from the abutment, reducing the peak unit discharge, reducing the average shear stress, and shifting the scour region away from the abutment. Together, these mechanisms substantially reduce the maximum scour depth. The test findings are compared with those from a much smaller model of riprap-apron performance.

  • Availability:
  • Supplemental Notes:
    • Abstract reprinted with permission from ASCE
  • Authors:
    • Morales, Reinaldo
    • Ettema, Robert
    • Barkdoll, Brian
  • Publication Date: 2008-6

Language

  • English

Media Info

Subject/Index Terms

  • TRT Terms: Bridge abutments; Erosion; Hydrologic phenomena; Revetments; Riprap; Scour
  • Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Highways; Hydraulics and Hydrology; Marine Transportation; I20: Design and Planning of Transport Infrastructure; I24: Design of Bridges and Retaining Walls; I26: Water Run-off - Freeze-thaw;

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01103040
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Files: TRIS
  • Created Date: Jun 24 2008 7:42AM