2017 Annual Stability Conference Presentation
Session S3 – Advances in Stability Bracing Wednesday, March 22, 2017 3:15 pm
Partial-Depth Precast Concrete Deck Panels on Curved Bridges
This ongoing research program is focused on the use of partial depth precast prestressed concrete panels (PCPs) as bracing elements in straight and curved bridges during the construction phase. The research team developed a connection detail between the PCPs and the girders with the input from a local precaster and construction experts. The shear stiffness of the PCP/connection assembly was experimentally determined in a full-scale shear test frame. To investigate the performance of the PCP/connection system, numerous tests were performed on a 72 ft. long full-scale twin I-girder system with and without PCPs connected to the girders. The system was first loaded laterally and then loaded with various combinations of bending and torsion to simulate bridges with varying radii of curvature. The results from the experimental tests are currently being used to validate the finite element models (FEM) that will be used for parametric studies to investigate a wide array of systems.
Colter E. Roskos, John R. Kintz, Paul Biju-Duval, Todd A. Helwig, Michael D. Engelhardt, Patricia Clayton, Eric Williamson and Ozzie Bayrak, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX