Approach-Span Failure of the Hoan Bridge as a Case Study for Engineering Students and Practicing Engineers
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 28, Issue 2
Abstract
On the morning of December 13, 2000, all three steel girders in a three-girder approach span of the Hoan Bridge in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, fractured. Two of the three girders had a fracture propagate completely through the 3.05-m-deep girders. The bridge was adequately designed and fabricated according to existing code specifications. The failure was caused by the geometric arrangement of the lateral bracing connection into the web of the girders that created a highly constrained condition and prevented yielding of the girder web when overloaded (a situation known as constraint-induced fracture). Other brittle fractures had been observed in steel bridges and ship structures in the United States, which also resulted from this condition. However, the Hoan Bridge attracted more publicity as it was near collapse. The failure of this bridge can serve as a case study for students and professionals. This paper describes the failure and its causes and suggests engineering lessons to be learned. The unique details of the failure offer the opportunity to promote critical thinking and problem solving at levels appropriate to undergraduate students, graduate students, and practitioners, through investigating the cause of failure, emphasizing the lessons learned, and highlighting the resulting change to engineering practice through modifications to code provisions.
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Acknowledgments
The development of this case study was funded by National Science Foundation Award No. 0919487 via subcontract from Cleveland State University. The principal investigator of the project is Professor Norbert Delatte.
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© 2014 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 4, 2012
Accepted: Sep 12, 2012
Published online: Sep 14, 2012
Published in print: Apr 1, 2014
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