TECHNICAL PAPERS
Jul 11, 2009

Bridge Scour: Prediction, Modeling, Monitoring, and Countermeasures—Review

Publication: Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 15, Issue 2

Abstract

Scour is one of the main causes of bridge failures. It accounts for about 60% of bridge failures in the United States. Scour failures tend to occur suddenly without prior warning and are very difficult to monitor during flood events. This paper presents a comprehensive review of the up-to-date work on scour at bridge piers and abutments. First, a general introduction of bridge scour including the current situation of bridge scour problems and different types of bridge scour is given. Then, different approaches developed for predicting bridge scour are reviewed. Numerical and laboratory models established for bridge scour studies are also presented. Moreover, laboratory experiments and field tests conducted for bridge scour are reviewed. Different techniques and instruments developed for bridge scour monitoring are also presented with their advantages, disadvantages, and relative cost summarized in a table. Finally, various mitigation countermeasures developed for bridge scour are discussed.

Get full access to this article

View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.

References

Abed, L., and Gasser, M. M. (1993). “Model study of local scour downstream bridge piers.” Proc., National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, San Francisco, 1738–1743.
Ataie-Ashtiani, B., and Beheshti, A. A. (2006). “Experimental investigation of clear-water local scour at pile groups.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 132(10), 1100–1104.
Barkdoll, B. D., Ettema, R., and Melville, B. W. (2007). “Countermeasures to protect bridge abutments from scour.” National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Rep. No. 587, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.
Bateni, S. M., Borghei, S. M., and Jeng, D. -S. (2007). “Neural network and neuro-fuzzy assessments for scour depth around bridge piers.” Eng. Applic. Artif. Intell., 20(3), 401–414.
Benedict, S. T., Deshpande, N., and Aziz, N. M. (2007). “Evaluation of abutment scour prediction equations with field data.” Transp. Res. Rec., 2025, 118–126.
Bertoldi, D., and Kilgore, R. (1993). “Tetrapods as a scour countermeasure.” Proc., National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, San Francisco, 1385–1395.
Bozkus, Z., and Yildiz, O. (2004). “Effects of inclination of bridge piers on scouring depth.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 130(8), 827–832.
Breusers, H. N. C., Nicollet, G., and Shen, H. W. (1977). “Local scour around cylindrical piers.” J. Hydraul. Res., 15(3), 211–252.
Cardoso, A. H., and Bettess, R. (1999). “Effect of time and channel geometry on scour at bridge abutments.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 125(4), 388–399.
Chang, W. -Y., Lai, J. -S., and Yen, C. -L. (2004). “Evolution of scour depth at circular bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 130(9), 905–913.
Chiew, Y. -M., and Lim, S. -Y. (2003). “Protection of bridge piers using a sacrificial sill.” Proc. Inst. Civ. Eng., Waters. Maritime Energ., 156(1), 53–62.
Choi, S. -U., and Cheong, S. (2006). “Prediction of local scour around bridge piers using artificial neural networks.” J. Am. Water Resour. Assoc., 42(2), 487–494.
De Falco, F., and Mele, R. (2002). “The monitoring of bridges for scour by sonar and sediment.” NDT Int., 35(2), 117–123.
Deng, L., and Cai, C. S. (2007). “Applications of fiber optic sensors in civil engineering.” Struct. Eng. Mech., 25(5), 577–596.
El-Razek, M. A., El-Motaleb, M. A., and Bayoumy, M. (2003). “Scour reduction around bridge piers using internal openings through the pier.” Alexandria Eng. J., 42(2), 241–248.
Ettema, R. (1980). “Scour at bridge piers.” Rep. No. 216, Univ. of Auckland, School of Engineering, New Zealand.
Federal Highway Administration. (1993). “Evaluating scour at bridges.” Hydraulic Engineering Circular No. 18, Rep. No. FHWA-IP-90-017, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C.
Froehlich, D. C. (1989). “Local scour at bridge abutments.” Proc., 1989 National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, New York, 13–18.
Fukuoka, S., Tomita, K., Hotta, T., and Miyagawa, T. (1994). “Practical numerical simulation of local scour around a bridge pier.” Proc., Japan Society of Civil Engineers, Tokyo, 71–79.
Gorin, S. R., and Haeni, F. P. (1989). “Use of surface-geophysical methods to assess riverbed scour at bridge piers.” U.S. Geological Survey Water-Resources Investigations Rep. No. 88-4212, Federal Highway Administration, 33.
Grimaldi, C., Gaudio, R., Calomino, F., and Cardoso, A. H. (2009). “Control of scour at bridge piers by a downstream bed sill.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 135(1), 13–21.
Hayes, D. C., and Drummond, F. E. (1995). “Use of fathometers and electrical-conductivity probes to monitor riverbed scour at bridges and piers.” Water Resource Investigations Rep. No. 94-4164, U.S. Geological Survey, Hartford, Connecticut.
Heza, Y. B. M., Soliman, A. M., and Saleh, S. A. (2007). “Prediction of the scour hole geometry around exposed bridge circular-pile foundation.” J. Eng. Appl. Sci., 54(4), 375–392.
Horne, W. A. (1993). “Scour inspection using ground penetrating radar.” Proc., National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, San Francisco, 1888–1893.
Hornik, K., Stichcombe, M., and White, H. (1989). “Multilayer feedforward networks are universal approximators.” Neural Networks, 2(5), 359–366.
Hunt, B. E. (2005). “Scour monitoring programs for bridge health.” Proc., 6th Int. Bridge Engineering Conf.: Reliability, Security, and Sustainability in Bridge Engineering, Transportation Research Board, Boston, 531–536.
Jain, S. C., and Fischer, E. E. (1979). “Scour around bridge piers at high Froude numbers.” Rep. No. FHWA-RD-79-104, Federal Highway Administration, Washington D.C.
Johnson, P. A. (1995). “Comparison of pier-scour equations using field data.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 121(8), 626–629.
Johnson, P. A., and Ayyub, B. M. (1996). “Modelling uncertainty in prediction of pier scour.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 122(2), 66–72.
Johnson, P. A., and Niezgoda, S. L. (2004). “Risk-based method for selecting bridge scour countermeasures.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 130(2), 121–128.
Jones, J. S. (1984). “Comparison of prediction equations for bridge pier and abutment scour.” Proc., Transportation Research Record, Second Bridge Engineering Conf., Vol. 2, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C., 202–209.
Kassem, A., Salaheldin, T. M., Imran, J., and Chaudhry, M. H. (2003). “Numerical modeling of scour around artificial rock island of Cooper River bridge.” Transp. Res. Rec., 1851, 45–50.
Kattell, J., and Eriksson, M. (1998). “Bridge Scour Evaluation: Screening, Analysis, and Countermeasures.” Pub. Rep. No. 9877, USDA Forest Service, Washington, D.C.
Kothyari, U., Garde, R., and Ranga Raju, K. (1992). “Temporal variation of scour around circular bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 118(8), 1091–1106.
Kumar, V., Ranga Raju, K. G., and Vittal, N. (1999). “Reduction of local scour around bridge piers using slots and collars.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 125(12), 1302–1305.
Lagasse, P. F., Clopper, P. E., Zevenbergen, L. W., and Girard, L. G. (2007). “Countermeasures to protect bridge piers from scour.” National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Rep. No. 593, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.
Lagasse, P. F., Richardson, E. V., Schall, J. D., and Price, G. R. (1997). “Instrumentation for measuring scour at bridge piers and abutments.” National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report No. 396, Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.
Lagasse, P. F., Zevenbergen, L. W., Schall, J. D., and Clopper, P. E. (2001). “Bridge scour and stream instability countermeasures: Experience, selection, and design guidelines.” Federal Highway Administration, Hydraulic Engineering Circular No. 23: FHWA NHI 01–003, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C.
Landers, M. N., and Mueller, D. S. (1996). “Evaluation of selected pier-scour equations using field data.” Transp. Res. Rec., 1523, 186–195.
Landers, M. N., Mueller, D. S., and Richardson, E. V. (1999). “U.S. Geological Survey field measurements of pier scour.” ASCE compendium, stream stability and scour at bridges, Richardson, E., and Lagasse, P., eds., ASCE, Reston, Va.
Lauchlan, C. S., and Melville, B. W. (2001). “Riprap protection at bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 127(5), 412–418.
Laursen, E. M., and Toch, A. (1956). Scour around bridge piers and abutments, Vol. 4, Iowa Highway Research Board, Ames, Iowa.
Lee, T. L., Jeng, D. S., Zhang, G. H., and Hong, J. H. (2007). “Neural network modeling for estimation of scour depth around bridge piers.” J. Hydrodynam., 19(3), 378–386.
Li, H., Barkdoll, B. D., Kuhnle, R., and Alonso, C. (2006). “Parallel walls as an abutment scour countermeasure.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 132(5), 510–520.
Lim, S. -Y. (1997). “Equilibrium clear-water scour around an abutment.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 123(3), 237–243.
Lin, Y. B., Chang, K. C., Lai, J. -S., and Wu, I. -W. (2004). “Application of optical fiber sensors on local scour monitoring.” Proc., IEEE Sensors, Vol. 2, Vienna, Austria, 832–835.
Lin, Y. B., Chen, J. -C., Chang, K. -C., Chern, J. -C., and Lai, J. -S. (2005). “Real-time monitoring of local scour by using fiber Bragg grating sensors.” Smart Mater. Struct., 14(4), 664–670.
Liu, H. K., Chang, F. M., and Skinner, M. M. (1961). “Effect of bridge constriction on scour and backwater.” Rep. No. CER60HKL22, Dept. of Civil Engineering, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, Colo.
Lu, J. -Y., Hong, J. -H., Su, C. -C., Wang, C. -Y., and Lai, J. -S. (2008). “Field measurements and simulation of bridge scour depth variation during floods.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 134(6), 810–821.
Mason, R. R., and Shepard, D. M. (1994). “Field performance of an acoustic scour-depth monitoring system.” Proc., Fundamentals and Advancements in Hydraulic Measurements and Experimentation, New York, 366–375.
Melville, B. W. (1992). “Local scour at bridge abutments.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 118(4), 615–631.
Melville, B. W. (1997). “Pier and abutment scour-integrated approach.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 123(2), 125–136.
Melville, B. W., and Chiew, Y. M. (1999). “Time scale for local scour at bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 125(1), 59–65.
Melville, B. W., and Raudkivi, A. (1977). “Flow characteristics in local scour at bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Res., 15(4), 373–380.
Melville, B. W., and Raudkivi, A. J. (1996). “Effects of foundation geometry on bridge pier scour.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 122(4), 203–209.
Melville, B. W., and Sutherland, A. J. (1988). “Design method for local scour at bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 114(10), 1210–1226.
Millard, S. G., Bungey, J. H., Thomas, C., Soutsos, M. N., Shaw, M. R., and Patterson, A. (1998). “Assessing bridge pier scour by radar.” NDT Int., 31(4), 251–258.
Molinas, A., and Abdeldayem, A. (1998). “Effect of clay content on bridge scour.” Proc., 1998 International Water Resources Engineering Conf., Part 1 (of 2), Memphis, Tenn., 280–285.
Molinas, A., Jones, S., and Hosny, M. (1999). “Effects of cohesive material properties on local scour around piers.” Transp. Res. Rec., 1690, 164–174.
Mueller, D. S. (1996). “Local scour at bridge piers in nonuniform sediment under dynamic conditions.” Ph.D. thesis, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, Colo.
Neil, C. R. (1964). “River bed scour, a review for bridge engineers, Contract No. 281.” Research Council of Alberta, Calgary, Alta., Canada.
Odgaard, A. J., and Wang, Y. (1987). “Scour prevention at bridge piers.” Proc., 1987 National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, New York, 523–527.
Oliveto, G., and Hager, W. H. (2002). “Temporal evolution of clear-water pier and abutment scour.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 128(9), 811–820.
Park, I., Lee, J., and Cho, W. (2004). “Assessment of bridge scour and riverbed variation by a ground penetrating radar.” Proc., 10th Int. Conf. on Ground Penetrating Radar, GPR 2004, Delft, The Netherlands, 411–414.
Parker, G., Toro-Escobar, C., and Voight, R. L., Jr. (1998). “Countermeasures to protect bridge piers from scour.” Users’ Guide (revised 1999) and Final Report, NCHRP Project No. 24-7, Prepared for National Cooperative Highway Research Program, Transportation Research Board by St. Anthony Falls Hydraulic Laboratory, Univ. of Minnesota, Minn.
Parker, G. W., Bratton, L., and Armstrong, D. S. (1997). “Stream stability and scour assessments at bridges in Massachusetts.” U.S. Geological Survey Open File Report No. 97-588 (CD-ROM), Massachusetts Highway Dept. Bridge Section, Marlborough, Mass., 53.
Parola, A. C., Mahavadi, S. K., and Brown, B. M. (1996). “Effects of rectangular foundation geometry on local pier scour.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 122(1), 35–40.
Richardson, E. V., and Davis, S. R. (2001). “Evaluating scour at bridges (3rd ed.).” Federal Highway Administration Hydraulic Engineering Circular No. 18: FHWA-IP-90–017, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, D.C., 203.
Richardson, J. E., and Panchang, V. G. (1998). “Three-dimensional simulation of scour-inducing flow at bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 124(5), 530–540.
Richardson, J. R., and Richardson, E. V. (1994). “Practical method for scour prediction at bridge piers.” Proc., ASCE National Conf. on Hydraulic Engineering, Buffalo, N.Y., 1–5.
Shen, H. W., Schneider, V. R., and Karaki, S. (1969). “Local scour around bridge piers.” Proc. ASCE, 95(6), 1919–1940.
Sheppard, D. M. (2003). “Large-scale and live-bed local pier scour experiments.” Coastal Engineering Technical Rep. No. 133, Civil and Coastal Engineering Dept., Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, Fla.
Sheppard, D. M., and William, M., Jr. (2006). “Live-bed local pier scour experiments.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 132(7), 635–642.
Shirhole, A. M., and Holt, R. C. (1991). “Planning for a comprehensive bridge safety program.” Transportation Research Record No. 1290, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington, D.C.
Umbrell, E. R., Young, G. K., Stein, S. M., and Jones, J. S. (1998). “Clear-water contraction scour under bridges in pressure flow.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 124(2), 236–240.
Yankielun, N. E., and Zabilansky, L. (1999). “Laboratory investigation of time-domain reflectometry system for monitoring bridge scour.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 125(12), 1279–1284.
Yanmaz, A. M., and Altinbilek, H. D. (1991). “Study of time-dependent local scour around bridge piers.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 117(10), 1247–1268.
Young, G. K., Dou, X., Saffarinia, K., and Jones, J. S. (1998). “Testing abutment scour model.” Proc., 1998 International Water Resources Engineering Conf., Vol. 1, Memphis, Tenn., 180–185.
Yu, X., and Yu, X. (2007). “Algorithm for time domain reflectometry bridge scour measurement system.” Proc., 7th Int. Symp. on Field Measurements in Geomechanics, FMGM 2007, Boston, 1–10.
Yu, X., and Zabilansky, L. J. (2006). “Time domain reflectometry for automatic bridge scour monitoring.” Geotechnical Special Publication, 149, 152–159.
Zarrati, A. R., Nazahira, M., and Mashahir, M. B. (2006). “Reduction of local scour in the vicinity of bridge pier groups using collars and riprap.” J. Hydraul. Eng., 132(2), 154–162.
Zounemat-Kermani, M., Beheshti, A. -A., Behzad, A. -A., and Sabbagh-Yazdi, S. -R. (2009). “Estimation of current-induced scour depth around pile groups using neural network and adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system.” Appl. Soft Comput., 9, 746–755.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Practice Periodical on Structural Design and Construction
Volume 15Issue 2May 2010
Pages: 125 - 134

History

Received: May 1, 2009
Accepted: Jul 6, 2009
Published online: Jul 11, 2009
Published in print: May 2010

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Authors

Affiliations

Former Graduate Student, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Louisiana State Univ., Baton Rouge, LA 70803. E-mail: [email protected]
C. S. Cai
Associate Professor, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Louisiana State Univ., Baton Rouge, LA 70803

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Download citation

If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.

Cited by

View Options

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Get Access

Access content

Please select your options to get access

Log in/Register Log in via your institution (Shibboleth)
ASCE Members: Please log in to see member pricing

Purchase

Save for later Information on ASCE Library Cards
ASCE Library Cards let you download journal articles, proceedings papers, and available book chapters across the entire ASCE Library platform. ASCE Library Cards remain active for 24 months or until all downloads are used. Note: This content will be debited as one download at time of checkout.

Terms of Use: ASCE Library Cards are for individual, personal use only. Reselling, republishing, or forwarding the materials to libraries or reading rooms is prohibited.
ASCE Library Card (5 downloads)
$105.00
Add to cart
ASCE Library Card (20 downloads)
$280.00
Add to cart
Buy Single Article
$35.00
Add to cart

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Copy the content Link

Share with email

Email a colleague

Share