Seismic fragility analysis of three-tower cable-stayed bridges with different connection configurations

Seismic fragility analysis of three-tower cable-stayed bridges with three different structural systems,including rigid system(RS),floating system(FS),and passive energy dissipation system(PEDS),is conducted to study the effects of connection configurations on seismic responses and fragilities.Finite element models of bridges are established using OpenSees.A new ground motion screening method based on the statistical characteristic of the predominant period is proposed to avoid irregular behavior in the selection process of ground motions,and incremental dynamic analysis(IDA)is performed to develop components and systems fragility curves.The effects of damper failure on calculated results for PEDS are examined in terms of seismic response and fragility analysis.The results show that the bridge tower is the most affected component by different structural systems.For RS,the fragility of the middle tower is significantly higher than other components,and the bridge failure starts from the middle tower,exhibiting a characteristic of local failure.For FS and PEDS,the fragility of the edge tower is higher than the middle tower.The system fragility of RS is higher than FS and PEDS.Taking the failure of dampers into account is necessary to obtain reliable seismic capacity of cable-stayed bridges.

Reliability-based life-cycle cost seismic design optimization of coastal bridge piers with nonuniform corrosion using different materials

Reinforcement corrosion is the main cause of performance deterioration of reinforced concrete(RC)structures.Limited research has been performed to investigate the life-cycle cost(LCC)of coastal bridge piers with nonuniform corrosion using different materials.In this study,a reliability-based design optimization(RBDO)procedure is improved for the design of coastal bridge piers using six groups of commonly used materials,i.e.,normal performance concrete(NPC)with black steel(BS)rebar,high strength steel(HSS)rebar,epoxy coated(EC)rebar,and stainless steel(SS)rebar(named NPC-BS,NPC-HSS,NPC-EC,and NPC-SS,respectively),NPC with BS with silane soakage on the pier surface(named NPC-Silane),and high-performance concrete(HPC)with BS rebar(named HPC-BS).First,the RBDO procedure is improved for the design optimization of coastal bridge piers,and a bridge is selected to illustrate the procedure.Then,reliability analysis of the pier designed with each group of materials is carried out to obtain the time-dependent reliability in terms of the ultimate and serviceability performances.Next,the repair time of the pier is predicted based on the time-dependent reliability indices.Finally,the time-dependent LCCs for the pier are obtained for the selection of the optimal design.

Application of Earthquake-Proof Design in Highway Bridge Design

Highway bridges are an important part of transportation infrastructure.With the rapid development of transportation,the design of bridge construction has received significant attention.The complex environment of some regions necessitates the selection of seismic design to improve the stability of the structure during the design phase of highway bridge construction.This article briefly discusses bridge structures that may be subject to seismic hazards and analyzes seismic design standards to explore their application in the design process of highway bridges,with the aim of providing support for bridge construction.

Design and Engineering of Urban Interchange Ramp Bridge Structure

This paper analyzes the structural design of an urban interchange ramp bridge from four aspects,which are the superstructure,pier structure,foundation structure,and deck structure design to summarize the structural design ideas of this urban interchange ramp bridge,which can be used as a reference for future construction of the same bridge.

Application Strategy of Composite Steel Composite Beams in Bridge Design

The combined prefabricated steel-hybrid stacked girder structure is very common in modern bridge design.An actual bridge engineering design project is taken as an example in this paper to analyze the application strategy of this structure,encompassing overall design strategy,structural design strategy,and structural calculation strategy.The aim is to offer insights that can enhance the quality of bridge design.

Application Strategy of BIM Technology in the Forward Design of Bridges

Bridge engineering is highly specialized and has spatial characteristics,which puts forward higher requirements for design work.The advancement of information technology has provided ample tools to facilitate bridge design work,with building information modeling(BIM)technology being one of them.BIM technology ensures the efficiency and quality of the forward design of bridges,while also reducing construction costs.This article starts with defining the concept of BIM technology,followed by a discussion on its advantages in bridge design and application process,which serves as a reference for other bridge designers.

Seismic Design Strategy of High Pier Bridge

China’s infrastructure construction has been continuously improving in recent years,especially its highway construction,which spans from north to south and connects east to west.Some special areas are also interconnected through bridges,but constructing highway bridges through complex terrains or across valleys and mountain gullies presents significant challenges,requiring an increase in the height of bridge piers.These bridge piers generally reach tens or even hundreds of meters in height.Furthermore,the construction of these high-pier bridges is becoming increasingly widespread.Not only do they pose greater construction challenges,but they also have higher requirements for seismic resistance.This article primarily analyzes the characteristics of high-pier bridges and proposes seismic design schemes,calculation methods,and design strategies to enhance the construction quality of high-pier bridges.

Overall Selection Design Based on the Mega Highway Bridge Project

In the continuous development of the modern highway and bridge engineering industry,the reasonable selection of mega highway bridges and their design is crucial.Based on this,this paper takes the actual bridge project as an example,and analyses the overall selection design of such highway bridges,including the basic overview of the project,the basic selection principle of mega highway bridge project structure and its design strategy,etc.,to provide scientific reference for its selection design.

A Review of the Key Points in the Design of Small-Radius Curved Ramp Bridges

This article explores the fundamentals of small-radius curved ramp bridges.It covers the selection of box girder spans,support methods,and forms,along with design optimization techniques for this type of bridge structure.The purpose of this paper is to provide robust support for enhancing the design quality of these bridges and ensuring their efficacy in real-world applications.

Application of Digital Technology in Road and Bridge Design

With the development and progress of science and technology,road and bridge design has experienced rapid development,from the initial manual drawing design to the popularity of Computer-Aided Design(CAD),and then to today’s digital software design era.Early designers relied on hand-drawn paper design forms which was time-consuming and error-prone.Digital support for road and bridge design not only saves the design time but the design quality has also achieved a qualitative leap.This paper engages in the application of digital technology in road and bridge design,to provide technical reference for China’s road and bridge engineering design units,to promote the popularity of Civil3D and other advanced design software in the field of engineering design and development,ultimately contributing to the sustainable development of China’s road and bridge engineering.

Structural Design of Roadbed and Pavement in Transition Section of Roads and Bridges

As the lifeline of social development,road and bridge projects are the main channel to realize resource transportation and economic circulation.Ensuring the quality of road and bridge project construction is crucial for the development of society,the economy,and people’s livelihoods.This paper studies the design of roadbed pavement structures in road and bridge transition sections.It aims to provide technical references and significance for China’s road and bridge engineering design and construction units,promoting scientific and standardized design in these actions.This will contribute to the safety and stable operation of road and bridge projects,offering effective technical support.Furthermore,it seeks to foster the sustainable and healthy development of China’s road and bridge engineering on a macro level.

A simplified design method for metallic dampers used in the transverse direction of cable-stayed bridges

The aseismic design of cable-stayed bridges in the transverse direction with newly proposed metallic dampers that can accommodate both longitudinal and transverse movement of the deck has recently been considered.This work focuses on developing a simplified method to design an appropriate metallic damper.The seismic performance of cablestayed bridges with different damper stiffness,main span lengths,tower shapes and types of deck in the transverse direction are investigated.The transverse displacement of the deck of a cable-stayed bridge increases significantly with the increment of the damper stiffness,which proves that the design of the damper stiffness is crucial.A simplified model considering the damper stiffness,cable system and tower in the transverse direction is developed to evaluate the period and lateral displacement of a complicated cable-stayed bridge.Based on the simplified model,a design method is proposed and assessed using two cable-stayed bridges as examples.The results show that metallic dampers can be designed with high efficiency,and the optimal ductility of the damper can be selected.

Shake table experimental study of cable-stayed bridges with two different design strategies of H-shaped towers

As one of the main load-carrying components of cable-stayed bridges,bridge towers are typically required to remain elastic even when subjected to severe ground motions with a 2%-3%probability of exceedance in 50 years.To fulfill this special requirement imposed by current seismic design codes,reinforcement ratios in the bridge towers have to be kept significantly higher than if limited ductility behavior of the tower is allowed.In addition,since the foundation capacity is closely related to the moment and shear capacities of the bridge tower,a large increase in bridge construction cost for elastically designed cable-stayed bridge is inevitable.To further investigate the possibility of limited ductility bridge tower design strategies,a new 1/20-scale cable-stayed bridge model with H-shaped bridge towers designed according to strong strut-weak tower column design was tested.The shake table experimental results are compared with a previous strong tower column-weak strut designed full bridge model.A comparison of the results show that ductility design with plastic hinges located on tower columns,i.e.,strong strut-weak tower column design,is another effective seismic design strategy that results in only small residual displacement at the top of the tower column,even under very severe earthquake excitations.

Conceptual Design of Hybrid Cable-Stayed Bridge with Central Span of 1000 m Using UHPC

Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) is featured by a compressive strength 5 times higher than that of ordinary concrete and by a high durability owing to the control of the chloride penetration speed by its dense structure. The high strength characteristics of UHPC offer numerous advantages like the reduction of the quantities of cables and foundations by the design of a lightweight superstructure in the case of the long-span bridge preserving its structural performance through axial forces and structures governed by compression. This study conducted the conceptual design of a hybrid cable-stayed bridge with central span of 1000 m and exploiting 200 MPa-class UHPC. The economic efficiency of the conceptual design results of the hybrid cable-stayed bridge with central span of 1000 m and of Sutong Bridge, the longest cable-stayed bridge in the world, was analyzed.

Probability evaluation method for cable safety of long-span cable-stayed bridges

A method of cable safety analysis is proposed for safety evaluation of long-span cable-stayed bridges. The Daniels＇ effect and the probability of broken wires in the cable are introduced to develop the cable strength model and the reliability assessment technique for long-span cable-stayed bridges based on the safety factors analysis of stay cables in service. As an application of the proposed model, the cable safety reliability of the cable No. 25 of Zhaobaoshan cable-stayed bridge in China is calculated. The effects of various parameters on the estimated cable safety reliability are investigated. The results indicate that the proposed method can be used to assess the safety level of stay cables in cable-stayed bridges effectively. The Daniels＇ effect should be taken into account for assessment, and the probability of broken wires can be used to simulate the deterioration of stay cables in service.

Mechanical performance evaluation of a new type of cable-stayed beam-arch combination bridge based on field tests

In order to study the mechanical performance of a new type of cable-stayed beam-arch combination bridge, the results of field static and dynamic load tests are comparatively analyzed with numerical results based on the Jingyi bridge straddling the Daxi River in Yixing. First, the test scheme, tasks, the corresponding measure method, as well as the relevant codes are described. Secondly, two sets of three- dimensional finite element models are established. One is Ansys which uses the solid element and the other is Midas which adopts the beam element. Finally, the experimental and analytical results are comparatively analyzed, and they show an agreement with each other. The results show that the bridge possesses adequate load-carrying capacity under all static load cases, but the capacity of dissipating external input energy is insufficient due to the relatively smaller damping ratio. The study results can provide a reference for further study and optimization of this type of bridge. Calibrated finite-element models that reflect the real conditions can be used as a baseline for future maintenance of the bridge.

Application of uncertain type of AHP to condition assessment of cable-stayed bridges

In order to guarantee the safety service and life-span of long-span cable-stayed bridges, the uncertain type of analytic hierarchy process （AHP） method is adopted to access the bridge condition. The correlative theory and applied objects of uncertain type of AHP are introduced, and then the optimal transitive matrix method is chosen to calculate the interval number judgment matrix, which makes the weights of indices more reliable and accurate. Finally, with Harbin Songhua River Cable-Stayed Bridge as an example, an index system and an assessment model are proposed for the condition assessment of this bridge, and by using uncertain type of AHP, the weights of assessment indices are fixed and the final assessment results of the bridge are calculated, which proves the feasibility and practicability of this method. The application of this assessment method can provide the scientific basis for maintenance and management of long-span cable-stayed bridges.

Ground motion spatial variability effects on seismic response control of cable-stayed bridges

The spatial variability of input ground motion at supporting foundations plays a key role in the structural response of cable-stayed bridges （CSBs）; therefore, spatial variation effects should be included in the analysis and design of effective vibration control systems. The control of CSBs represents a challenging and unique problem, with many complexities in modeling, control design and implementation, since the control system should be designed not only to mitigate the dynamic component of the structural response but also to counteract the effects of the pseudo-static component of the response. The spatial variability effects on the feasibility and efficiency of seismic control systems for the vibration control of CSBs are investigated in this paper. The assumption of uniform earthquake motion along the entire bridge may result in quantitative and qualitative differences in seismic response as compared with those produced by uniform motion at all supports. A systematic comparison of passive and active system performance in reducing the structural responses is performed, focusing on the effect of the spatially varying earthquake ground motion on the seismic response of a benchmark CSB model with different control strategies, and demonstrates the importance of accounting for the spatial variability of excitations.

Damage investigation of girder bridges under the Wenchuan earthquake and corresponding seismic design recommendations

An investigation of girder bridges on National Highway 213 and the Doujiangyan-Wenchuan expressway after the Wenchuan earthquake showed that typical types of damage included： span collapses due to unseating at expansion joints; shear key failure; and damage of the expansion joint due to the slide-induced large relative displacement between the bottom of the girder and the top of the laminated-rubber bearing. This slide, however, can actually act as a form of isolation for the substructure, and as a result, the piers and foundation of most of the bridges on state route 213 suffered minor damage. The exception was the Baihua Bridge, which suffered severe damage. Corresponding seismic design recommendations are presented based on this investigation.

Longitudinal forces of continuously welded track on high-speed railway cable-stayed bridge considering impact of adjacent bridges

A proven beam-track contact model was used to analyze the track-structure interaction of CWR (continuously welded track) on bridge. Considering the impact of adjacent bridges, the tower-cable-track-beam-pier-pile finite element model of the cable-stayed bridge was established. Taking a bridge group including 40-32m simply-supported beam and (32+80+112)m single-tower cable-stayed bridge and 17-32m simply-supported beam on the Kunming-Shanghai high-speed railway as an example, the characteristics of CWR longitudinal force on the cable-stayed bridge were studied. It is shown that adjacent bridges must be considered in the calculation of the track expansion force and bending force on cable-stayed bridge. When the span amount of adjacent bridges is too numerous, it can be simplified as six spans; the fixed bearing of adjacent simply-supported beams should be placed on the side near the cable-stayed bridge; the track expansion device should be set at the bridge tower to reduce the track force near the bridge abutment.