• Wind and Structures
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.405-430
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• 2017

The aerodynamic characteristics of vehicles are critical to assess vehicle safety and passenger comfort for vehicles running on long span bridges in a windy environment. However, in previous wind-vehicle-bridge (WVB) system analysis, the aerodynamic interference between the vehicle and the bridge was seldom considered, which will result in changing aerodynamic coefficients. In this study, the aerodynamic coefficients of a high-sided truck on the ground (ground case) and a typical bridge deck (bridge deck case) are determined in a wind tunnel. The effects of existent structures including the bridge deck and bridge accessories on the high-sided vehicle's aerodynamic characteristics are investigated. A three-dimensional analytical framework of a fully coupled WVB system is then established based on the finite element method. By inputting the aerodynamic coefficients of both cases into the WVB system separately, the vehicle safety and passenger comfort are assessed, and the critical accidental wind speed for the truck on the bridge in a windy environment is derived. The differences in the bridge response between the windward case and the leeward case are also compared. The results show that the bridge deck and the accessories play a positive role in ensuring vehicle safety and improving passenger comfort, and the influence of aerodynamic interference on the response of the bridge is weak.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.417-430
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• 2019

To study the wake influence of an upstream bridge on the wind-resistance performance of a downstream bridge, two adjacent long-span cable-stayed bridges are taken as examples. Based on wind tunnel tests, the static aerodynamic coefficients and the dynamic response of the downstream bridge are measured in the wake of the upstream one. Considering different horizontal and vertical distances, the flutter derivatives of the downstream bridge at different angles of attack are extracted by Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations and discussed, and the change in critical flutter state is further studied. The results show that a train passing through the downstream bridge could significantly increase the lift coefficient of the bridge which has the same direction with the gravity of the train, leading to possible vertical deformation and vibration. In the wake of the upstream bridge, the change in lift coefficient of the downstream bridge is reduced, but the dynamic response seems to be strong. The effect of aerodynamic interference on flutter stability is related to the horizontal and vertical distances between the two adjacent bridges as well as the attack angle of incoming flow. At large angles of attack, the aerodynamic condition around the downstream girder which may drive the bridge to torsional flutter instability is weakened by the wake of the upstream bridge, and the critical flutter wind speed increases at this situation.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.279-300
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• 2013

This paper presents a new analysis framework for predicting the internal buffeting forces in bridge components under skew wind. A linear regressive model between the internal buffeting force and deformation under normal wind is derived based on mathematical statistical theory. Applying this regression model under normal wind and the time history of buffeting displacement under skew wind with different yaw angles in wind tunnel tests, internal buffeting forces in bridge components can be obtained directly, without using the complex theory of buffeting analysis under skew wind. A self-anchored suspension bridge with a main span of 260 m and a steel arch bridge with a main span of 450 m are selected as case studies to illustrate the application of this linear regressive framework. The results show that the regressive model between internal buffeting force and displacement may be of high significance and can also be applied in the skew wind case with proper regressands, and the most unfavorable internal buffeting forces often occur under yaw wind.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.353-370
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• 2013

This paper presents a new method to study the impact factor of an old bridge based on the model updating technique. Using the genetic algorithm (GA) by minimizing an objective function of the residuals between the measured and predicted responses, the bridge and vehicle coupled vibration models were updated. Based on the displacement relationship and the interaction force relationship at the contact patches, the vehicle-bridge coupled system can be established by combining the equations of motion of both the bridge and vehicles. The simulated results show that the present method can simulate precisely the response of the tested bridge; compared with the other bridge codes, the impact factor specified by the bridge code of AASHTO (LRFD) is the most conservative one, and the value of Chinese highway bridge design code (CHBDC) is the lowest; for the large majority of old bridges whose road surface conditions have deteriorated, calculating the impact factor with the bridge codes cannot ensure the reliable results.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.395-414
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• 2013

The present study fundamentally investigated the mechanical performance of the rib-stiffened super-wide bridge deck with twin box girders in concrete, which is a very popular application to efficiently widen the bridges with normal span. The shear lag effects of the specific cross-sections were firstly studied. The spatial stress distribution and local stiffness of the bridge deck with twin box girders were then investigated under several typical wheel load conditions. Meanwhile, a comparative study for the bridge deck with and without stiffening ribs was also carried out during the investigation; thereby, a design optimization for the stiffening ribs was further suggested. Finally, aiming at the preliminary design, an approximate methodology to manually calculate the bending moments of the rib-stiffened bridge deck was analytically proposed for engineers to quickly assess its performance. This rib-stiffened bridge deck with twin box girders can be widely applied for concrete (especially concrete cable-stayed) bridges with normal span, however, requiring a super-wide bridge width due to the traffic flow.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2022.06a
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• pp.245-252
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• 2022

Risk identification for bridge projects is a knowledge-based and labor-intensive task involving several procedures and stakeholders. Presently, risk information of bridge projects is unstructured and stored in different sources and formats, hindering knowledge sharing, reuse, and automation of the risk identification process. Consequently, there is a need to develop structured and formalized risk information for bridge projects to aid effective risk identification and automation of the risk management processes to ensure project success. This study proposes a semantic risk breakdown structure (SRBS) to support risk identification for bridge projects. SRBS is a searchable hierarchical risk breakdown structure (RBS) developed with python programming language based on a semantic modeling approach. The proposed SRBS for risk identification of bridge projects consists of a 4-level tree structure with 11 categories of risks and 116 potential risks associated with bridge projects. The contributions of this paper are threefold. Firstly, this study fills the gap in knowledge by presenting a formalized risk breakdown structure that could enhance the risk identification of bridge projects. Secondly, the proposed SRBS can assist in the creation of a risk database to support the automation of the risk identification process for bridge projects to reduce manual efforts. Lastly, the proposed SRBS can be used as a risk ontology that could aid the development of an artificial intelligence-based integrated risk management system for construction projects.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2007.03a
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• pp.810-819
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• 2007

Usually the status of a bridge is determined by its structural capability and material strength. Consequently a lot of researchers have studied the failure, the fatigue, and the deterioration of the structure in terms of the structural function of a bridge. However, the overall performance of a bridge may be affected simply by the damage of one of its components. Therefore this study utilized a systematic classification and statistical analysis based on the existing bridge inspection data collected in Taiwan to reach the following goals: (1) assess the performance distribution and deterioration rate for bearing and expansion joint of bridge; (2) find out the right time to do the preventive and essential maintenance for the component of bridge with an empirical method, and to decide what time and which component of a bridge will receive preventive maintenance or regular maintenance.

• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.65-75
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• 2015

Among the destruction instances of half-through arch bridges, the shorter hangers are more likely to be ruined. For a thorough investigation of the hanger system durability, we have studied vehicle impact effect on hangers with vehicle-bridge coupling method for a half-through concrete-filled-steel-tube arch bridge. A numerical method has been applied to simulate the variation of dynamic internal force (stress) in hangers under different vehicle speeds and road surface roughness. The characteristics and differences in impact effect among hangers with different length (position) are compared. The impact effect is further analyzed comprehensively based on the vehicle speed distribution model. Our results show that the dynamic internal force induced by moving vehicles inside the shorter hangers is significantly greater than that inside the longer ones. The largest difference of dynamic internal force among the hangers could be as high as 28%. Our results well explained a common phenomenon in several hanger damage accidents occurred in China. This work forms a basis for hanger system's fatigue analysis and service life evaluation. It also provides a reference to the design, management, maintenance, monitoring, and evaluation for this kind of bridge.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.19-43
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• 2016

In the present study, a new methodology is presented to study the ride comfort and bridge responses of a long-span bridge-traffic-wind coupled vibration system considering stochastic characteristics of traffic flow and bridge surface progressive deterioration. A three-dimensional vehicle model with 24 degrees-of-freedoms (DOFs) including a three-dimensional non-linear suspension seat model and the longitudinal vibration of the vehicle is firstly presented to study the ride comfort. An improved cellular automaton (CA) model considering the influence of the next-nearest neighbor vehicles and a progressive deterioration model for bridge surface roughness are firstly introduced. Based on the equivalent dynamic vehicle model approach, the bridge-traffic-wind coupled equations are established by combining the equations of motion of both the bridge and vehicles in traffic using the displacement relationship and interaction force relationship at the patch contact. The numerical simulations show that the proposed method can simulate rationally the ride comfort and bridge responses of the bridge-traffic-wind coupled system; and the vertical, lateral, and longitudinal vibrations of the driver seat model can affect significantly the driver's comfort, as expected.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.361-372
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• 2024

Reinforced concrete (RC) bridge columns are typically designated as the primary source of energy dissipation for a bridge structure during an earthquake. Therefore, seismic repair of RC bridge columns has been studied extensively during the past several decades. On the other hand, few studies have been conducted to evaluate how repaired column members influence the system-level response of an RC bridge structure in subsequent earthquakes. In this study, a numerical model was established to simulate the response of two large-scale RC columns, repaired using different techniques, reported in the literature. The columns were implemented into a prototype bridge model that was subjected to earthquake loading. Incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) and fragility analysis were conducted on numerical bridge models to evaluate the efficacy of the repairs and the post-repair seismic performance of the prototype bridge that included one or more repaired columns in various locations. For the prototype bridge herein modeled, the results showed that a confinement-enhanced oriented repair would not affect the seismic behavior of the prototype bridge. Increasing the strength of the longitudinal reinforcement could effectively reduce the drift of the prototype bridge in subsequent earthquakes. A full repair configuration for the columns was the most effective method for enhancing the seismic performance of the prototype bridge. To obtain a positive effect on seismic performance, a minimum of two repaired columns was required.