• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
• /
• v.11 no.2
• /
• pp.87-100
• /
• 2024

Traffic-induced vibrations (TIVs) possess the potential to induce structural damage in both historical and critical edifices. Recent investigations have underscored the adverse impact of TIVs within buildings, manifesting as a deleterious influence on the quality of life and operational efficiency of occupants. Consequently, these studies have dichotomized TIVs into two primary limit categories: the threshold for vibrations capable of causing structural damage and the limit values associated with human comfort. In this current research endeavor, an exhaustive analysis of peak ground acceleration (PGA), peak ground velocity (PGV), peak ground displacement (PGD), and the frequency spectrum of ground motions originating from diverse traffic sources has been conducted. Furthermore, the detrimental repercussions of these vibrations on structures, gauged through the assessment of the peak particle velocity (PPV) parameter, have been systematically evaluated. The findings of this study elucidate that TIVs within the examined structures do not attain magnitudes conducive to structural compromise; however, the levels surpassing human comfort limits are evident, attributable to specific sources and distances. Moreover, this investigation sheds light on the absence of comprehensive criteria and guidelines pertaining to the assessment of TIVs in structures within the Turkish Building Seismic Design Code 2018. It seeks to raise awareness among building constructors about the critical importance of addressing this issue, emphasizing the imperative for guidelines in mitigating the impact of TIVs on both structural integrity and human well-being.

• Wind and Structures
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.21-41
• /
• 2013

Wind-induced vibrations of mast arms of cantilever traffic signal structures can lead to fatigue failure. Two such structures were instrumented each with a sonic anemometer and a camera that records the motions of the tip of the arm. It was observed throughout this experiment that large amplitude vertical vibrations of mast arms with signals with backplates occur for the most part at low wind speed ranges, between 2 to 7 m/s, and as the wind speed increases the amplitude of the vertical vibrations decreases. The results of these experiments contradict the generally accepted belief that vortex shedding does not cause significant vibrations of mast arms that could lead to fatigue failure, which have been attributed to galloping in the past. Two damping devices were tested with mixed results.

• Computers and Concrete
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.411-423
• /
• 2023

The rapid development of road transport has increased the number of bridges that require widening. A critical issue in the construction of bridge widening is the influence of vibrations of the old bridge on the casting of wet joint concrete between the old and new bridges owing to the running traffic. Typically, the bridge is closed to traffic during the pouring of wet joint concrete, which negatively affects the existing transportation network. In this study, a newly developed microscopic traffic load modeling approach and the vehicle-bridge interaction theory are incorporated to develop a refined numerical framework for the analysis of random traffic-bridge coupled dynamics. This framework was used to investigate traffic-induced vibrations at the wet joint of a widened bridge. Based on an experimental study on the vibration resistance of wet joint concrete, traffic control strategies were proposed to ensure the construction performance of cast-in-site wet joint concrete under random traffic without interruption. The results show that the vibration displacement and frequency of the old bridge, estimated by the proposed framework, were comparable with those obtained from field measurements. Based on the target peak particle velocity and vibration amplitude of the wet joint concrete, it was found that traffic control measures, such as limiting vehicle gross weight and limiting traffic volume by closing an additional traffic lane, could ensure the construction performance of the wet joint concrete.

• Wind and Structures
• /
• v.16 no.3
• /
• pp.225-240
• /
• 2013

The wind-induced vibrations of the mast arm of cantilever traffic signal structures can lead to the fatigue failure of these structures. Wind tunnel tests were conducted on an aeroelastic model of this type of structure. Results of these experiments indicated that when the signals have backplates, vortex shedding causes large-amplitude vibrations that could lead to fatigue failure. Vibrations caused by galloping were only observed for one particular angle of attack with the signals having backplates. No evidence for galloping, previously thought to be the dominant cause of fatigue failures in these structures, was observed.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.12 no.5
• /
• pp.583-589
• /
• 2017

In this study, result of a field investigation of railway traffic-induced vibrations is provided to examine acceptability levels of ground vibration and to evaluate the serviceability of a liquid-storage tank. Free field attenuation of the amplitudes as a function of distance is derived by six accelerometers and compared with a well-known half-space Bornitz's analytical solution which considers the loss of the amplitude of waves due to geometrical damping and material damping of Rayleigh. Bornitz's solution tends to overlap vertical free field vibration compared with in-situ measured records. The vibrations of the liquid-storage tank were compared with the USA, Federal Transportation Railroad Administration (FTA) criteria for acceptable ground-borne vibrations and with the criteria in DIN 4150-3 German standard. Comparing the thresholds stated in DIN 4150-3, absolute peak particle velocities are within the safe limits, however according to FTA velocity level at the top of the water tank exceeds the allowable limits. Furthermore, it is intended to indicate experimentally the effect of the kinematic interaction caused by the foundation of the structure on the free-field vibrations.

• Wind and Structures
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.405-422
• /
• 2015

In previous model- and full-scale studies, high-amplitude vertical vibrations of mast-arm traffic signal structures have been shown to be due to vortex shedding, a phenomenon in which alternatingly shed, low-pressure vortices induce oscillating forces onto the mast-arm causing a cross-wind response. When the frequency of vortices being shed from the mast-arm corresponds to the natural frequency of the structure, a resonant condition is created causing long-lasting, high-amplitude vibrations which may lead to the fatigue failure of these structures. Turbulence in the approach flow is known to affect the cohesiveness of vortex shedding. Results from this full-scale investigation indicate that the surrounding terrain conditions, which affect the turbulence intensity of the wind, greatly influence the likelihood of occurrence of long-lasting, high-amplitude vibrations and also impact whether reduced service life due to fatigue is likely to be of concern.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.78 no.2
• /
• pp.125-134
• /
• 2021

In this paper, the effects of Tuned Mass dampers (TMDs) on the reduction of the vertical vibrations of a real horizontally curved steel box-girder bridge due to different traffic loads are numerically investigated. The performance of TMDs to reduce the bridge vibrations can be affected by the parameters such as dynamic characteristics of TMDs, the location of TMDs, the speed and weight of vehicles. In the first part of this study, the effects of mass ratio, damping percentage, frequency ratio, and location of TMDs on the performance of TMDs to decrease vertical vibrations of different sections of bridge deck are evaluated. In the second part, the performance of TMD is investigated for different speeds and weights of traffic loads. Results show that the mass ratio of TMDs is the more effective parameter in reducing imposed vertical vibration in comparison with the damping ratio. Furthermore, it is found that TMD is very sensitive to its tuned frequency, i.e., with a little deviation from a suitable frequency, the expected performance of TMD significantly decreased. TMDs have a positive and considerable performance at certain vehicle speeds and this performance declines when the weight of traffic loads is increased. Besides, the results reveal that the highest impact of TMD on the reduction of the vertical vibrations is when free vibrations occur for the bridge deck. In that case, maximum reductions of 24% and 59% are reported in the vertical acceleration of the bridge deck for the forced and free vibration amplitudes, respectively. The maximum reduction of 13% is also obtained for the maximum displacement of the bridge deck. The results are mainly related to the resonance condition.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering Conference
• /
• 2002.11a
• /
• pp.396.1-396
• /
• 2002

The AVT under traffic-induced vibrations was carried out on Namhae Suspension bridge in Korea. Mode shapes as well as natural frequencies up to the 15th mode were acquired exactly, and the effect of traffic mass and temperature on measured natural frequencies was investigated. The results from the AVT are compared with those from forced vibration test(FVT) and FE analysis. (omitted)

• Interaction and multiscale mechanics
• /
• v.3 no.4
• /
• pp.373-387
• /
• 2010

This study is intended to assess low frequency sound radiated from a viaduct under normal traffic. The bridge comprises steel box girders and wide cantilever decks on which vehicles pass. The low frequency sound and the acceleration response of the bridge under normal traffic are measured to investigate how bridge vibrations affect the low frequency sound observed near the bridge. Observations demonstrate that strong relationships exist between frequency characteristic of bridge's acceleration response and the sound pressure level of low frequency sound. A noteworthy point is that the dynamic feature of the sound pressure level is mostly affected by dynamic feature of the span locating near the observation point.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.11 no.5
• /
• pp.503-518
• /
• 2001

In this paper, the procedure for deriving an infinite element that is compatible with the quadrilateral Q8 element is first summarized. Enhanced by a self mesh-expansion procedure for generating the impedance matrices of different frequencies for the region extending to infinity, the infinite element is used to simulate the far field of the soil-structure system. The structure considered here is of the box type and the soils are either homogeneous or resting on a bedrock. Using the finite/infinite element approach, a parametric study is conducted to investigate the effect of open and in-filled trenches in reducing the structural vibration caused by a train passing nearby, which is simulated as a harmonic line load. The key parameters that dominate the performance of wave barriers in reducing the structural vibrations are identified. The results presented herein serve as a useful guideline for the design of open and in-filled trenches concerning wave reduction.