Performance of Bridge Columns Subjected to Blast Loads. I: Experimental Program
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Abstract
Statistical data from past terrorist attacks show that transportation infrastructure has been widely targeted, and a significant percentage of the attacks against transportation structures have been directed towards bridges. Recent threats to bridges in the United States validate this concern and have attracted the attention of the bridge engineering community. To address these concerns, the National Cooperative Highway Research Program sponsored a research project to investigate the response of critical bridge components subjected to blast loads. This paper includes a description of an experimental research program on ten different half-scale column designs in which the design parameters that have the greatest impact on the performance of blast-loaded bridge columns were evaluated. Interpretation of the test results and guidelines for the blast-resistant design of reinforced concrete bridge columns are provided in the companion paper written by the writers.
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Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the National Cooperative Highway Research Program for providing the financial resources that made this project possible. The authors also wish to thank the Southwest Research Institute as well as Kirk Marchand and Aldo McKay of Protection Engineering Consultants for providing their time and significant effort in helping carry out the experimental research program described in this manuscript. In addition, the authors thank Wagdy Wassef and John Kulicki of Modjeski and Masters for their assistance in developing design guidelines based on the findings of the research program. The opinions expressed in this paper are solely those of the authors and they do not necessarily represent those of the sponsor.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Bridge Engineering
Volume 16 • Issue 6 • November 2011
Pages: 693 - 702
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 25, 2010
Accepted: Jan 11, 2011
Published online: Jan 13, 2011
Published in print: Nov 1, 2011
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