Title:
Fatigue Performance Under Rolling Load of Full Scale Concrete Bridge Deck with GFRP Reinforcement Using Rolls
Author(s):
Fam
Publication:
Web Session
Volume:
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
Keywords:
DOI:
Date:
3/23/2024
Abstract:
A full scale (15.24 m x 3.89 m) reinforced concrete bridge deck supported by steel girders spaced at 3.05 m was built and tested under cyclic rolling load fatigue using a new Rolling Load Simulator (ROLLS) at Queen’s University, Canada. The deck included different reinforcement types and materials. One middle section, 3.81 m x 3.89 m was supported by a new design of GFRP stay-in-place structural form system which also served as the bottom reinforcement. The system comprised GFRP I-beams running in the transverse direction (i.e. perpendicular to traffic direction) at 900 mm spacing and supported by the top flanges of the steel girders. Flat GFRP plates with integral T-up ribs were then used to span the spacing between the GFRP I-girders and were supported by their bottom flanges where the T-up ribs ran longitudinally (i.e. parallel to traffic). Epoxy adhesive and self-taping screws were used at the connections. Concrete was then poured where the webs and top flanges of the I-beams as well as the T-up ribs were all embedded inside the deck. A GFRP rebar mesh supported by the top flanges of the I-beams was used as top reinforcement. A total of three million equivalent cycles were completed using two half-axle loads spaced at 1.2 m, applied through the dual tires of the machine as shown in the figure below. Stiffness of the deck was assesses periodically using a quasi-static monotonic loading to establish the slope of the load-deflection curve. This was then used to establish the stiffness degradation over the loading history of the three million cycles.