Novel Riprap Structure for Improved Bridge Pier Scour Protection
Publication: Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 148, Issue 3
Abstract
This study introduced a new riprap placement design for the purpose of reducing bridge pier scour. The design consisted of embedding a layer of the riprap around the pier, flush with the surrounding bed, with a depression to help guide the horseshoe vortex. The new countermeasure design was tested among other conventional riprap placement designs in clear-water flow conditions and transition-flow conditions. The transition-flow condition is the evolution period from clear water to live bed where the bed has yet to reach an equilibrium state. The new countermeasure design was found to reduce greatly the depth and volume of scour in both flow conditions, up to 81.0% and 92.3%, respectively, which was more than any other riprap countermeasure tested. In addition, the new design used 18% less riprap material while also experiencing less shape deterioration when compared with a traditional flat riprap cover. Therefore, installing riprap in this specified shape yields an improved scour countermeasure that could help preserve infrastructure and increase public safety.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Such items consist of the velocity and scour data.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the financial support from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) through Discovery Grants to Colin Rennie and Ioan Nistor, and the Alexander Graham Bell Canada Graduate Doctoral Scholarship (CGS D) to Christopher Valela. The authors also acknowledge Grant Lamont for his design insight and Jacob Stolle for his data processing assistance.
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Published In
Journal of Hydraulic Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 3 • March 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Apr 1, 2021
Accepted: Oct 27, 2021
Published online: Jan 13, 2022
Published in print: Mar 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Jun 13, 2022
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