INSTRUMENTATION AND TESTING OF AN EXPERIMENTAL CONTINUOUS CONCRETE BRIDGE REINFORCED WITH HIGH-YIELD-STRENGTH STEEL

IN 1960, THE NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION (THEN THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS), IN COLLABORATION WITH THE U.S. BUREAU OF PUBLIC ROADS, THE REINFORCED CONCRETE RESEARCH COUNCIL, THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATE HIGHWAY OFFICIALS, THE HIGHWAY RESEARCH BOARD, AND THE PORTLAND CEMENT ASSOCIATION, UNDERTOOK THE DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION, AND TESTING OF A FOUR-SPAN, FOUR-LANE CONTINUOUS CONCRETE BRIDGE REINFORCED WITH HIGH-YIELD-STRENGTH STEEL. THE BRIDGE, DESIGNED BY ULTIMATE STRENGTH METHODS AND INSTRUMENTED DURING CONSTRUCTION, SPANS THE OUTER LOOP EXPRESSWAY (INTERSTATE 490) IN ROCHESTER, NEW YORK. THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC ROADS FURNISHED RECORDING EQUIPMENT, A TEST TRUCK CLOSELY APPROXIMATING AASHO HS20-44 TRACTOR-TRAILER LOADING, AND OPERATING PERSONNEL. FIVE SEPARATE TEST PATHS ACROSS THE BRIDGE WERE USED, WITH FOUR SPEEDS RANGING FROM 3 TO 30 MPH. STRAINS IN THE REINFORCING STEEL AND CONCRETE AT MIDSPAN AND SUPPORT LOCATIONS, AND DEFLECTIONS AT MIDSPAN WERE CONTINUOUSLY RECORDED DURING EACH RUN. LONG-TERM DEAD-LOAD DEFLECTIONS WERE MEASURED PERIODICALLY WITH A PRECISE LEVEL. SEVERE IMPACT WAS CREATED BY DIRECTING TRUCK WHEELS OVER A STEPPED PLANK. STRAIN DATA REDUCED TO STRESSES ARE EXAMINED IN TERMS OF DESIGN VALUES. ACTUAL LOAD DISTRIBUTION AND IMPACT FACTORS, AS WELL AS NEUTRAL AXIS LOCATION, ARE COMPUTED FROM THE EXPERIMENTAL DATA. THE RESULTS CONFIRM THE DESIGN IMPACT FACTOR, BUT SHOW LOAD DISTRIBUTION TO THE GIRDERS TO BE APPROXIMATELY 70 PERCENT OF THE DESIGN VALUE. DESIGN WORKING STRESSES MAY NEVER BE REALIZED BECAUSE OF SPECIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR DESIGN LOADING AND ITS DISTRIBUTION. LONG-TERM DEAD-LOAD DEFLECTION MEASUREMENTS CHECK DESIGN ESTIMATES CLOSELY. THIS HIGH-YIELD-STRENGTH STEEL REINFORCED CONCRETE STRUCTURE IS PERFORMING SATISFACTORILY AND IN THE MANNER PREDICTED BY ANALYSIS AND MODEL TESTING. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrr/1969/295/295-003.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Paper sponsored by Committee on Concrete Superstructures and presented at the 48th Annual Meeting. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Antoni, Charles M
  • Corbisiero, Joseph A
• Publication Date: 1969

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 25-40
• Monograph Title: Bridges
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Record
  • Issue Number: 295
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bridge design; Bridge superstructures; Bridges; Continuously reinforced concrete pavements; Deflection; Four lane highways; High strength steel; Load transfer; Measuring instruments; Recording; Reinforced concrete bridges; Static loads; Strain (Mechanics); Structural design; Ultimate load design; Yield strength
• Uncontrolled Terms: Bridge spans
• Old TRIS Terms: Continuous reinforcement; Strains; Ultimate strength design
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Highways;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00209147
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Mar 9 1970 12:00AM