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Innovative precast, prestressed concrete network arches: Elastic response during construction
Author(s) -
Yousefpour Hossein,
Gallardo Jose M.,
Helwig Todd A.,
Bayrak Oguzhan
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
structural concrete
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.912
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1751-7648
pISSN - 1464-4177
DOI - 10.1002/suco.201600176
Subject(s) - precast concrete , arch , structural engineering , engineering , bridge (graph theory) , finite element method , arch bridge , prestressed concrete , truck , bending moment , geotechnical engineering , medicine , aerospace engineering
To the authors’ knowledge, the West Seventh Street Bridge in Fort Worth, Texas is the first precast concrete network arch bridge in the world. Completed in 2013, this bridge consists of 12 identical arches that were precast and post‐tensioned near the bridge site. The prefabricated arches, which were 49.8‐m long and weighed approximately 2,500 kN, were then transported to the bridge site and erected. To evaluate the structural behavior throughout construction and under subsequent live (truck) loading, 224 vibrating wire gauges were embedded in the 12 arches prior to concrete placement. Three‐dimensional finite element models of the arches were also developed to evaluate the structural response under different loading and boundary conditions. Relatively small bending moments were observed in the arches, and the response of the arch elements was generally governed by axial forces. This paper describes the bridge, the instrumentation, and the modeling effort, in addition to the short‐term response of the arches.