Performance of Highway Bridge Girder Anchorages under Simulated Hurricane Wave Induced Loads
Publication: Journal of Bridge Engineering
Volume 17, Issue 2
Abstract
Many bridges along the Gulf Coast of the United States were damaged by hurricanes, especially in the 2004 and 2005 hurricane seasons. Many more bridges are susceptible to similar damage. This research examines the structural performance of three commonly used connection details for AASHTO Type III prestressed concrete girders: headed studs, through bolts, and clip bolts. Full-scale specimens were fabricated and tested under static and dynamic cyclic load histories using expected maximum loads from previously conducted hydraulic tests of a scale model of a highway bridge spanning a coastal embayment. The load effects considered included (1) vertical uplift force, (2) lateral force, (3) combined lateral and vertical forces, and (4) dynamically applied wave force time histories. Connection performance was evaluated by comparing initial concrete cracking, strand slip, and ultimate capacity. The experimental results showed that the insert clip-bolt connections had the lowest capacity and produced significant ancillary damage to the surrounding concrete while the headed-stud connections exhibited the highest load capacity and negligible ancillary concrete damage. None of the anchorages considered would be capable of resisting newly specified vertical wave forces for large hurricane wave heights when significant air is entrapped such as those observed in Hurricane Katrina.
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Acknowledgments
This research was funded by the Oregon Transportation Research and Education Consortium (OTREC) and the National Science Foundation with grant NSFCMMI 0800822 of the Hazard Mitigation and Structural Engineering program. Dr. Keith Kaufman of Knife River in Harrisburg, Oregon, provided helpful suggestions and guidance during the fabrication of the specimens. Mr. Robbie Chambless of the Alabama Department of Transportation, Mr. Artur D’Andrea of the Louisiana Department of Transportation, and Mr. Rick Renna of the Florida Department of Transportation provided typical details of AASHTO Type III superstructure connections. The findings, conclusions and recommendations presented are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the project sponsors or individuals acknowledged.
References
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Bridge Engineering
Volume 17 • Issue 2 • March 2012
Pages: 259 - 271
Copyright
© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 30, 2010
Accepted: Apr 20, 2011
Published online: Apr 25, 2011
Published in print: Mar 1, 2012
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