Behavior of large-scale composite partially-filled steel grid decks
Abstract
Lighter-weight bridge decks are becoming more widely used, particularly for rehabilitation of aging bridges, as they can increase the live load capacity and eliminate the need for costly superstructure and substructure strengthening. Many popular prefabricated deck systems have been developed including concrete-filled steel grid decks. Due to the proprietary nature of these deck systems, manufacturers often claim superior durability while no adequate testing procedure has been developed for the qualification and acceptance of prefabricated bridge deck systems. The behavior of a large-scale composite partially-filled steel grid deck under rolling live load was established and used to aid in the development of a cyclic load test. Roll testing was performed to determine the locations of the maximum response of critical deck details. The cyclic tests represent millions of cycles of truck tire loading and were used to evaluate the durability of critical details in the deck. Load was applied to longitudinal and transverse field splices. These cyclic tests were later applied to subassembly deck specimens as part of a larger research project to develop a bridge deck testing specification. The results confirmed that the partially-filled grid deck behaved compositely with the supporting beams and that the durability of the critical details in the large-scale grid deck could be represented by subassembly specimens.
Degree
M.S.C.E.
Advisors
Liu, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Civil engineering
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