VERIFICATION OF COMPUTER SIMULATION METHODS FOR SLAB AND BRIDGE SYSTEMS

TYPICAL ORTHOTROPIC SLAB AND GIRDER BRIDGES WERE STUDIED AND THE CORRELATION BETWEEN REPORTED TEST RESULTS AND COMPUTERIZED ANALYTICAL SOLUTIONS EVALUATED. EMPHASIS WAS GIVEN TO A DISCRETE ELEMENT SIMULATION PROCESS DEVELOPED IN PROJECT 3-S-63-56. THE RANGE OF APPLICATION OF THE PREVIOUSLY DEVELOPED COMPUTER PROGRAMS WAS EXPLORED. THREE TYPES OF SLAB AND GIRDER BRIDGE SYSTEMS WERE STUDIED: PRESTRESSED CONCRETE, REINFORCED CONCRETE, AND BOTH COMPOSITE AND NONCOMPOSITE STEEL GIRDERS WITH CONCRETE SLABS. BRIDGES WITH BOTH SIMPLE AND CONTINUOUS SPANS AND NORMAL AND SKEW CROSSINGS WERE INCLUDED. THE MOST IMPORTANT PARAMETERS STUDIED WERE THE FLEXURAL AND TORSIONAL STIFFNESS OF THE GIRDERS. THE COMPUTER SIMULATION REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SLAB AND GIRDER BRIDGE SYSTEMS WERE PRESENTED AND DETAILED PROCEDURES OUTLINED TO OBTAIN GOOD MATHEMATICAL MODELS FOR THE PHYSICAL SYSTEMS. A COMPUTER PROGRAM TO GENERATE REALISTIC CURVATURE RELATIONSHIPS FOR REINFORCED CONCRETE MEMBERS WAS DEVELOPED. THIS PROGRAM TAKES INTO ACCOUNT THE EFFECT OF CRACK FORMATION ON THE BEHAVIOR OF MEMBERS. THE STUDY OF CRACK FORMATION SHOWS THAT THE STEEL PERCENTAGE PRESENT IN THE SECTION HAS A LARGE INFLUENCE ON THE BEHAVIOR OF THE CONCRETE MEMBERS. THIS REPORT INCLUDES THE COMPARISON AND ANALYSIS OF TEST RESULTS FOR THIRTEEN REPRESENTATIVE SLAB AND GIRDER BRIDGES. THE PARAMETERS OF THE BRIDGES WERE EVALUATED ACCORDING TO THE METHOD RECOMMENDED IN THE STUDY. IN GENERAL, THE CORRELATION WITH PHYSICAL TEST RESULTS WAS EXCELLENT. /AUTHOR/

• Corporate Authors:

  Texas State Department of Highways & Public Transp

  11th and Brazos Streets
  Austin, TX  United States  78701

  University of Texas, Austin

  Center for Highway Research, 200 West 21st Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78712

  Federal Highway Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Alani, A F
  • Breen, J E
• Publication Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bridge members; Computer programs; Girder bridges; Orthotropic; Simulation; Structural analysis
• Uncontrolled Terms: Parameters
• Old TRIS Terms: Test results
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Highways;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00208033
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Federal Highway Administration
• Report/Paper Numbers: Study No 115-1f
• Files: TRIS, USDOT, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Mar 27 1972 12:00AM