Recently titanium alloy bars (TiABs) have been gaining popularity in civil engineering applications. They offer good deformation capacity, better fatigue performance, high-strength-to-weight ratio, lighter weight (60% that of steel), and excellent corrosion resistance. Recently, TiABs were used in the strengthening of two bridges in Oregon to increase the shear and flexural capacities of the concrete beams. The research in this paper quantifies some common mechanical properties of TiABs using experimental investigation. This is done to explore suitability of the material for wider applications in civil infrastructure. The four types of testing conducted in accordance with ASTM standards included tension, hardness, Charpy V-Notch, and galling tests. Samples of 150 ksi (1034 MPa) high strength steel were also tested for comparison. Test results showed good performance of TiABs. Analytical models are proposed for stress-strain and toughness-temperature relationships.

Due to the increase in traffic and transported freight in the past decades, a significant number of in-service bridges have been subjected to loads above their original design capacities. Bridge structures typically incorporate deep concrete elements, such as cap beams or bent caps, with higher shear strengths than slender elements. However, many in-service bridges did not account for the deep beam effects in their original design due to the lack of suitable analysis methods at that time. Nonlinear finite element analysis (NLFEA) can provide a better assessment of the load capacity of deep bridge bent beams while accounting for the deep beam action. However, there is little guidance on how to conduct a numerical strength evaluation using the NLFEA. This study presents a nonlinear modeling methodology for the strength evaluation of deep bridge bents while considering advanced concrete behavior such as tension stiffening, compression softening, and dowel action. Five existing bridge bent beams are examined using the proposed methodology. The effectiveness and advantages of the proposed methodology are discussed by comparing the numerical results, including the load-displacement responses, load capacities, cracking patterns and failure modes, with the strut-and-tie and sectional analysis methods. Important modeling considerations are also discussed to assist practitioners in accurately evaluating deep bridge bents.

In 2006 in Quebec, a skewed cantilever solid concrete slab bridge without shear reinforcement collapsed due to a shear failure, which highlighted the need to improve the assessment of this type of structure. A large experimental program was carried out to test three decommissioned solid slab bridges to failure. In parallel, an extensive nonlinear finite element analysis study was performed with the aim of better understanding the failure mechanisms, the degree of load redistribution, and to gain insight into the ultimate shear capacity of these structures. A beam shear failure mode was expected for the first two bridge tests, but a flexural failure mode was observed. This paper focusses mainly on the last field test of a simply supported solid slab bridge having a 40 degree skew. The load position and the loading protocol were established with the objective of causing a shear failure at the obtuse corner of the slab where high shear forces develop. The main test motivation was to illustrate that simply supported solid slab bridges would normally not be prone to shear failure due to an intrinsic redundancy. The paper presents experimental techniques that could help bridge owners in assessing the performance of their bridges. The test results also provide valuable information for calibrating nonlinear element models that can be used for assessing the carrying capacity of existing concrete bridges. Although the actual bridge conditions were worse than anticipated, a global shear failure mode occurred near the obtuse corner at a maximum load of 1400 kN, which significantly exceeded the factored shear force due to the maximum traffic load. The failure was followed by a gradual load redistribution toward undamaged portions of the slab. This field test confirmed the assumption of non-fragility for this type of bridge, where support conditions enable development of an intrinsic redundancy. Despite these observations, nonlinear analyses carried out in parallel to the testing program indicated that this beneficial effect diminishes with an increase of slab thickness.

An experimental investigation was conducted on a full-scale prestressed concrete girder laboratory bridge to determine whether linear elastic shear distribution principles are conservative for load rating at ultimate capacity. A secondary goal was to determine whether existing web-shear cracks would be visible in an unloaded state. Two tests were conducted to failure (one near the end with a partial-depth diaphragm and one near the end without) to determine if the most loaded interior girder shed shear force to adjacent girders as it transitioned from uncracked to cracked to failure. Failure during each test was characterized by web-shear crushing and bridge deck punching at the peak applied load. Differences in the behavior of the two ends (with and without partial depth end diaphragm) affected the diagonal crack pattern, shear distribution, and loads at cracking and failure. The effect on loading was less than 10%. Inelastic shear distribution results indicated the girder carrying the most load redistributed shear to the other girders as it lost stiffness due to cracking. Use of linear elastic load distribution factors was conservative considering shear distribution at ultimate capacity. The visibility of web-shear cracks in an unloaded state was found to be a function of stirrup spacing.

The existing Champlain Bridge is a major structure in Montreal. It contains 50 concrete spans. The 10 ft (3.1 m) deep I-girders span 172 ft (52.4 m) and are post-tensioned. Because the prestressing steel has suffered from corrosion, it was necessary to use advanced techniques to evaluate the performance of these I-girders. Detailed twodimensional non-linear finite element modelling was used to determine the responses at service load and at ultimate. Three-dimensional finite element modelling was carried out to determine the loading for the two-dimensional modelling. The serviceability checks examined if cracking would occur and the strength requirements were evaluated using predicted demand-to-capacity ratios (D/C). These analysis tools also enabled the influence of a number of strengthening techniques to be assessed. The influence of different strengthening techniques on the predicted responses of the diaphragms was also studied. The combinations of strengthening measures were found to be effective in achieving the desired serviceability and strength requirements. Keywords: