2010

Steel-Precast Composite Girders
(In collaboration with Dr. Jeffrey West)
The purpose of this research is to investigate non-conventional shear connectors for use in steel-precast composite bridge girders. Steel-precast composite construction is seeing increasing use in rapid bridge replacement projects and in temporary bridges constructed for various resource industry applications. A significant challenge in this type of construction is the creation of a shear connection between the precast deck panels and the girders (Thomann and Lebet, 2007).

Recent research by Walbridge, West, and collaborators (Bowser 2010), has looked at the development of economical and effective alternatives to conventional stud pockets for temporary steel-precast composite bridges used in Canadian resource sectors such as logging and mining. Of the various concepts examined, the following approaches were found to show the most promise: 1) the use of post-installed shear connectors (Kwon et al. 2009) employing bearing or slip-critical connections combined with various friction-enhanced surfaces, and 2) the use of discrete stiffened bearing plates at the ends of the precast panels. Both approaches do not rely upon field grouting of the connection for composite action. The main objective of the proposed research is to further develop and investigate the behaviour of shear connections employing these two non-conventional approaches.

For the first approach, small-scale push tests on specimens with various connector arrangements and finite element analysis (FEA) studies of full-scale bridge girders will lead to the development of design recommendations for this type of shear connection. For the second approach, a previously established FEA modelling procedure will be employed to generalize results obtained for a specific logging industry application to other discrete shear connector intervals, bridge dimensions, and applications, such as highway and municipal rapid bridge construction.

It is expected that the results of this work will represent a significant step forward in the development of steel-precast composite shear connectors, which could have a significant impact on the economy and optimal construction procedures for steel-precast composite bridges.

References:

Bowser, M. (2010). “Development of a Shear Connection for a Portable Composite Bridge”, MASc Thesis, University of Waterloo.

Kwon, G., Engelhardt, M. D., & Klingner, R. E. (2009). “Strengthening bridges by developing composite action in existing non-composite bridge girders”, Structural Engineering International, (4), pp. 432-437.

Thomann, M. & Lebet, J.-P. (2007). “Design method for connections by adherence for steel-concrete composite bridges”, Structural Engineering International, (1), pp. 86-93.