Sustained-Load and Fatigue Performance of a Hybrid FRP-Concrete Bridge Deck System
Publication: Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 14, Issue 6
Abstract
The design and construction of bridge systems with long-term durability and low maintenance requirements is a significant challenge for bridge engineers. One possible solution to this challenge could be through the use of new materials, e.g., fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites, with traditional materials that are arranged as an innovative hybrid structural system where the FRP serves as a load-carrying constituent and a protective cover for the concrete. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation designed to evaluate the performance of a 3/4 scale hybrid FRP-concrete (HFRPC) bridge deck and composite connection under sustained and repeated (fatigue) loading. In addition, following the sustained-load and fatigue portions of the experimental study, destructive testing was performed to determine the first strength-based limit state of the hybrid deck. Results from the sustained-load and fatigue testing suggest that the HFRPC deck system might be a viable alternative to traditional cast-in-place reinforced concrete decks showing no global creep behavior and no degradation in stiffness or composite action between the deck and steel girders after 2 million cycles of dynamic loading with a peak load of 1.26 times the scaled tandem load (TL). Furthermore, the ultimate strength test showed that the deck failed prior to the global superstructure at a load approximately six times the scaled TL.
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Acknowledgments
The work described in this paper was funded by New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) through Grant No. UNSPECIFIEDC-02-07 administered by Transportation Infrastructure Research Consortium (TIRC). The original concept of the HFRPC bridge deck was partly developed by Dr. Wael Alnahhal in his Ph.D. dissertation. We would like to thank him for supplying the information that eased the execution of the project. The writers also thank Dr. Sreenivas Alampalli for his guidance and input to this project. The writers would also like to thank the staff of the Structural Engineering and Earthquake Simulation Laboratory at the State University of New York at Buffalo for their assistance with the setup and execution of each of the testing phases.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 14 • Issue 6 • December 2010
Pages: 856 - 864
Copyright
© 2010 ASCE.
History
Received: Jul 29, 2009
Accepted: Apr 14, 2010
Published online: Apr 16, 2010
Published in print: Dec 2010
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