50-Year-Old Prestressed Segmental Concrete Bridges
Publication: Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 128, Issue 2
Abstract
The first prestressed segmental concrete bridge in the United States opened to traffic was a small bridge in Madison County, Tennessee. The bridge was constructed using prestressed concrete segments and was opened to traffic in October 1950. Prestressed concrete beams were placed side by side to form the superstructure of the bridge. The construction of this bridge and several other similar prestressed concrete bridges are described herein. The existing condition of eleven prestressed concrete bridges remaining in Tennessee is given. Only minor spalling, leaching, and horizontal cracking are present in the superstructure after fifty years of service. Many of the design features introduced in this design can be found in today’s modern precast segmental concrete bridges.
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References
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering Education and Practice
Volume 128 • Issue 2 • April 2002
Pages: 83 - 87
Copyright
Copyright © 2002 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Nov 15, 1999
Accepted: Jan 9, 2001
Published online: Apr 1, 2002
Published in print: Apr 2002
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