Failure Analysis of Pot Bearings in a Curved Viaduct
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 34, Issue 5
Abstract
This paper presents a failure analysis of pot-type bearings on the West 8th Avenue viaduct in Denver, Colorado, and aims at determining the causes of guide bar fracture, polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) peeling, and steel–steel grind. All the failure modes of the pot-type bearings resulted from the thermal response of this structure. Two finite-element models were applied in this study. One model was developed using SAP 2000 to examine the thermal effect, including transverse and longitudinal movement and vertical pressure. The other model was developed using ANSYS software and emphasized contact analysis based on stress and displacement contour plots. The purpose was to demonstrate how the components of the bearing structure interact when subjected to the movement and stress transferred from the superstructure. The results indicated that when the upper steel plate of the bearing was subjected to transverse and longitudinal movement, the excessive movement caused the guide bar to hit the steel pot. The lateral slippage of the two components occurred simultaneously, leading to the generation of steel–steel grind of the two components. Extremely large-edge contact stresses arose from the eccentrical loading on the PTFE, resulting in PTFE wear and peeling in the long term. Because the steel pot resisted the intermediate section of the guide bar, the guide bar was laterally bent. Initial cracking was induced, and low cycle fatigue loading accelerated the crack expansion in a radial plane until the guide bar fractured.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
The principal investigator is deeply grateful to the City and County of Denver for funding, resources and ongoing assistance supporting this project. The research team, including Yang Zhou, Juan Montenegro, and Samir Mizyed, are appreciated for their inspiration and other contributions to this project. Dick Miles from Bowman Construction Supply is acknowledged for providing valuable guidance and suggestions for this project. The contents reported here are based on the findings of the authors and do not necessarily represent the view of other parties.
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©2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 14, 2018
Accepted: Jan 23, 2020
Published online: Jun 17, 2020
Published in print: Oct 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Nov 17, 2020
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