• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.119-128
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• 2012

In this study, experimental vibration tests are performed on a real full-scale railway steel plate girder bridge, which resides in open-space environments. Using experimental modal analysis techniques, the modal parameters of the railway steel plate girder bridge yielded by the modal testing of the impact hammer are compared and investigated with the natural frequencies and mode shapes obtained by finite element analysis. This work focuses on the application of model updating techniques to measured experimental data and output-only data from an analytical vibration study that takes into account various geometric and material properties of the bridge members. A finite element model of the railway bridge structure is used to verify the modal experimental results. It is subsequently updated using the corresponding modal identification technique. The basic database is provided to evaluate damage, which can be determined based on the changes in the element properties, resulting from the process of updating the finite element model benchmark and experimental data.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.5 no.6
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• pp.479-492
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• 2002

A finite element aerodynamic model that can be used to analyse flutter instability of long span bridges in the time domain is presented. This approach adopts a simplified quasi-steady formulation of the wind forces neglecting the vortex shedding effects. The governing equations used are effective only for reduced velocities $V^*$ sufficiently great: this is generally acceptable for long-span suspension bridges and, then, the dependence of the wind forces expressions of the flutter derivatives can be neglected. The procedure describes the mechanical response in an accurate way, taking into account the non-linear geometry effects (large displacements and large strains) and considering also the compressed locked coil strands instability. The time-dependence of the inertia force due to fluid structure interaction is not considered. The numerical examples are performed on the three-dimensional finite element model of the Great Belt East Bridge (DK). A mode frequency analysis is carried out to validate the model and the results show good agreement with the experimental measurements of the full bridge aeroelastic model in the wind tunnel tests. Significant parameters affecting bridge response are introduced and accurately investigated.

• International journal of steel structures
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.1219-1241
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• 2018

This study aims towards the improvement of a reinforced concrete rigid-frame bridge in an effort to reduce the construction and maintenance costs, and achieve an improved seismic performance. Correspondingly, a new structural rigid connection is proposed for H-shaped steel girders and reinforcing bars at the corner of the rigid-frame structure. Both experiments and numerical analyses were performed. Prototype models were constructed and subjected to static loading tests to reveal their load-carrying capacity and failure mode. Numerical models were then developed using finite elements to evaluate the experimental results. Analyses elicited good agreement between simulation and experimental data and validated the numerical models. Moreover, the validity of the proposed rigid connection was confirmed, and the failure behavior was clarified. Finally, a full-size model of the reinforced concrete rigid-frame bridge with H-shaped steel girders was constructed and subjected to destructive loading tests to evaluate structural integrity of the proposed rigid connection.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.33-45
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• 2006

Cable-stayed bridges are more inherently vulnerable to wind during the erection stages than when they are already being used. Even if a bridge that is already being used is aerodynamically stable, it is prone to having aerodynamic instabilities within the design wind speed during construction. Therefore, when the bridge's designers deliberate on the method they will use in constructing the bridge, they must likewise come up with a suitable plan to ensure the stability of the bridge during its erection (e.g., conducting a wind-tunnel investigation). This paper describes the aeroelastic full-bridge model tests that were conducted to investigate the aerodynamic behavior of the bridge during erection, with emphasis on aerodynamic stability and the mitigation of the buffeting response through temporary stabilization. The aerodynamic performance of a cable -stayed bridge with a main span of 50 m was studied in its completed stage and in two erection stages, corresponding 50% and 90% completion, respectively. In the 50% erection stage tests, a balanced cantilever configuration, with wind cable and temporary support at the tower, was conducted. The system that was determined to be most effective in reducing wind action on the bridge during construction was proposed in the paper, based on the results of the comparative study that was conducted.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.925-946
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• 2015

This paper presents a new cost-effective hybrid GFRP-Concrete deck system that the GFRP panel serves as both tensile reinforcement and stay-in-place form. In order to understand the fatigue behavior of such hybrid deck, fatigue test on a full-scale specimen under sagging moment was conducted, and a series of static tests were also carried out after certain repeated loading cycles. The fatigue test results indicated that such hybrid deck has a good fatigue performance even after 3.1 million repeated loading cycles. A three-dimensional finite element model of the hybrid deck was established based on experimental work. The results from finite element analyses are in good agreement with those from the tests. In addition, flexural fatigue analysis considering the reduction in flexural stiffness and modulus under cyclic loading was carried out. The predicted flexural strength agreed well with the analytical strength from finite element simulation, and the calculated fatigue failure cycle was consistent with the result based on related S-N curve and finite element analyses. However, the flexural fatigue analytical results tended to be conservative compared to the tested results in safety side. The presented overall investigation may provide reference for the design and construction of such hybrid deck system.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.171-186
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• 2008

The seismic response analysis of an existing bridge needs a mathematical model that can be calibrated with measured dynamic characteristics. These characteristics are the periods and the associated mode shapes of vibration and the modal damping coefficients. This paper deals with the measurements and the interpretation of the results of ambient vibration tests done on a newly erected cable stayed bridge across the Oued Dib River at Mila city in Algeria. The signal analysis of ambient vibration records will permit to determine the dynamic characteristics of the bridge. On the other hand, a 3-D model of the bridge is developed in order to assess the frequencies and the associated modes of vibration. This information will be necessary in the planning of the test on the site (locations of the sensors, frequencies to be measured and the associated mode shapes of vibration). The frequencies predicted by the finite element model are compared with those measured during full-scale ambient vibration measurements of the bridge. In the same way, the modal damping coefficients obtained by the random decrement method are compared to those of similar bridges.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.147-160
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• 2007

In this paper, we described the aeroelastic full-bridge model tests that were conducted to investigate the effect of alternative temporary stabilizing measures for thecable-stayed bridge during construction to ensure aerodynamic stability in the event of a typhoon or similar disasters. The effect of alternative temporary stabilizing measures was investigated through various configurations on two cable-stayed bridges with a main span of 475 m and 230 m, respectively. To investigate the bridge's aerodynamic behaviour and dynamic wind force during construction, the deflections at the end of the cantilever, the accelerations atthe top of the pylon and the moments at the lower part of the pylon were measured. As the result, the system with two sets of vertical cables per cantilever seemed to be the overall most effective solution, but the system with single vertical cable may also work. The combined system using the caisson support and vertical cables and the system with two sets of inclined cables per cantilever on the same anchor block may also be a solution. The inclined cables from the caisson to the girder were effective for some early stages of erecting the deck.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.53-70
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• 2003

Tsing Ma Bridge in Hong Kong is the longest suspension bridge in the world carrying both highway and railway. It has two H-shape concrete towers, each of which is composed of two reinforced concrete legs and four deep transverse prestressed concrete beams. A series of wind tunnel tests have been performed to measure the aerodynamic coefficients of the tower legs and transverse beams in various arrangements. A 1:100 scaled 3D rigid model of the full bridge tower assembled from various tower components has been constructed for different test cases. The aerodynamic coefficients of the lower and upper segments of the windward and leeward tower legs and those of the transverse beams at different levels, with and without the dummy bridge deck model, were measured as a function of yaw wind angle. The effects of wind interference among the tower components and the influence of the bridge deck on the tower aerodynamic coefficients were also investigated. The results achieved can be used as the pertinent data for the comparison of the computed and field-measured fully coupled buffeting responses of the entire bridge under yaw winds.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.23 no.5
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• pp.405-420
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• 2016

Section model wind tunnel test is currently the main technique to investigate the flutter performance of long-span bridges. Further study about applying the wind tunnel test results to the aerodynamic optimization is still needed. Systematical parameters and test principle of the bridge section model are determined by using three long-span steel truss suspension bridges. The flutter critical wind at different attack angles is obtained through section model flutter test. Under the most unfavorable working condition, tests to investigate the effects that upper central stabilized plate, lower central stabilized plate and horizontal stabilized plate have on the flutter performance of the main beam were conducted. According to the test results, the optimal aerodynamic measure was chosen to meet the requirements of the bridge wind resistance in consideration of safety, economy and aesthetics. At last the credibility of the results is confirmed by full bridge aerodynamic elastic model test. That the flutter reduced wind speed of long-span steel truss suspension bridges stays approximately between 4 to 5 is concluded as a reference for the investigation of the flutter performance of future similar steel truss girder suspension bridges.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.171-176
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• 2016

This paper proposes road safety facilities applying Hot-dip zinc-aluminum-magnesium alloy-coated steel sheets and coils to reduce the loss of function caused by the corrosion of steel in the service state. Vehicle crash simulations and full-scale crash tests were carried out to provide reliable information on evaluating the crash performance with the products of road safety facilities built with hot-dip zinc-aluminum-magnesium alloy-coated steel. From the results of the simulations and full-scale crash tests, the impact behaviors evaluated by the three-dimensional crash simulations considering the strain-rate dependency in a constitutive model were similar to those obtained from the full-scale crash test results. The full-scale crash test results met the crashworthiness evaluation criteria; hence, the proposed bridge barrier in this paper is ready for field applications.