U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
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Federal Highway Administration Research and Technology
Coordinating, Developing, and Delivering Highway Transportation Innovations
REPORT |
This report is an archived publication and may contain dated technical, contact, and link information |
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Publication Number: FHWA-HRT-13-060 Date: June 2013 |
Publication Number: FHWA-HRT-13-060 Date: June 2013 |
This chapter describes specific applications of UHPC in infrastructure projects. Separate sections contain descriptions of the applications in North America (United States and Canada), Europe, and Asia/Australasia. Potential applications described in the literature are also presented.
Table 14 provides a list of the applications in the United States and Canada.
Name | Country | Year | Application | Reference (First Author) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Mars Hill Bridge, Wapello County, IA | United States | 2006 | Three 45-in.-deep bulb-tee beams | Bierwagon(237) Endicott(238) |
Route 624 over Cat Point Creek, Richmond County, VA | United States | 2008 | Five 45-inch-deep bulb-tee girders | Ozyildirim(45) |
Jakway Park Bridge, Buchanan County, IA | United States | 2008 | Three 33-inch-deep pi-shaped girders | Keierleber(239) |
State Route 31 over Canandaigua Outlet, Lyons, NY | United States | 2009 | Joints between deck bulb tees | Shutt(240) |
State Route 23 over Otego Creek, Oneonta, NY | United States | 2009 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Royce(241) |
Little Cedar Creek, Wapello County, IA | United States | 2011 | Fourteen 8-inch-deep waffle deck panels | Moore(242) |
Fingerboard Road Bridge over Staten Island Expressway, NY | United States | 2011 to 2012 | Joints between deck bulb tees | Royce(241) |
State Route 248 over Bennett Creek, NY | United States | 2011 | Joints between deck bulb tees | Royce(237) |
U.S. Route 30 over Burnt River and UPRR bridge, Oregon | United States | 2011 | Haunch and shear connectors and transverse joints | Bornstedt(243) |
U.S. Route 6 over Keg Creek, Pottawatomie County, IA | United States | 2011 | Longitudinal and transverse joints between beams | Graybeal(63) |
Ramapo River Bridge, Sloatsburg, NY | United States | 2011 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Anon(244) |
State Route 42 Bridges (2) near Lexington, NY | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels and shear pockets | Anon(244) |
State Route 31 over Putnam Brook near Weedsport, NY | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Anon(244) |
I-690 Bridges (2) over Peat Street near Syracuse, NY | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Anon(244) |
I-690 Bridges (2) over Crouse Avenue near Syracuse, NY | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Anon(244) |
I-481 Bridge over Kirkville Road near Syracuse, NY | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels | Anon(244) |
Windham Bridge over BNSF Railroad on U.S. Route 87 near Moccasin, Montana | United States | 2012 | Joints between full-depth deck panels and shear connections to beams | Anon(244) |
Sherbrooke Pedestrian Overpass, Quebec | Canada | 1997 | Precast, post-tensioned space truss | Blaise(2) |
Highway 11 over CN Railway at Rainy Lake, Ontario | Canada | 2006 | Joints between precast panels and shear connector panels | Perry(245) |
Glenmore/Legsby Pedestrian Bridge, Calgary | Canada | 2007 | Precast, post-tensioned tee-section | Perry(246) |
Highway 11/17, Sunshine Creek, Ontario | Canada | 2007 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Highway 17, Hawk Lake, Ontario | Canada | 2007 to 2008 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Sanderling Drive Pedestrian Overpass, Calgary | Canada | 2008 | Tee section drop-in girder | Anon(244) |
Highway 105 over Buller Creek, Ontario | Canada | 2009 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Highway 71 over Log River, Ontario | Canada | 2009 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Route 17 over Eagle River, Ontario | Canada | 2010 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs and to establish live load continuity | Graybeal(63,139) |
La Vallee River Bridge, Ontario | Canada | 2010 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Highway 105 over Wabigoon River, Ontario | Canada | 2010 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Graybeal(139) |
Highway 105 over the Chukuni River, Ontario | Canada | 2010 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Graybeal(139) |
Steel River Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario |
Canada | 2010 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Anon (244) |
Mathers Creek Bridge on Highway 71, Ontario | Canada | 2010 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Noden Causeway on Highway 11, Ontario | Canada | 2010 to 2013 | Joint fill between adjacent precast panels | Anon (244) |
Highway 17 over Current River, Ontario | Canada | 2011 | Joints between precast curbs | Perry(247) |
Mackenzie River Bridges (2) on Highway 11/17, Ontario | Canada | 2011 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Anon (244) |
Wabigoon River Bridge on Highway 605, Ontario | Canada | 2011 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Anon (244) |
Whiteman Creek Bridge on Highway 24, Ontario | Canada | 2011 | Shear pockets and longitudinal and transverse joints between precast panels. Connections between H-piles and precast abutments | Young(248,249) |
Shashawanda Creek Bridge, Ontario | Canada | 2011 | Shear connector pockets and longitudinal and transverse joints between precast panels | Anon (244) |
Hodder Ave Overpass over Highway 11/17, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Hawkeye Creek Bridge on Highway 589, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Hawkeye Creek Tributary Bridge on Highway 589, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Black River Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Beaver Creek Bridge on Highway 594, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Anon (244) |
Middle Lake Bridge on Highway 17A, Ontario | Canada | 2012 | Joint fill between precast curbs and precast approach slabs | Anon (244) |
Jackpine River Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Bug River Bridge on Highway 105, Ontario |
Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Beaver Creek Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Sturgeon River Bridge on Highway 11, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Blackwater River Bridge on Highway 11, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Nugget Creek Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Little Wabigoon Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Melgund Creek Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
McCauley Creek Bridge on Highway 11, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Joint fill between adjacent box beams and between precast curbs | Young2 |
Little Pic River Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Young2 |
Jackfish River Bridge on Highway 17, Ontario | Canada | 20131 | Shear connector pockets and panel joints | Young2 |
Westminster Drive, Ontario | Canada | 20141 | Longitudinal joints to connect superstructure modules. | Young2 |
1 Projected construction date. 2. W. Young to B. Graybeal, personal email communication, December 21, 2012. |
The first highway bridge constructed in North America was the Mars Hill bridge in Wapello County, IA.(238) The simple single-span bridge, as shown in figure 13, comprises three 110-ft (33.5-m)-long precast, prestressed concrete modified 45-inch (1.14-m)-deep Iowa bulb-tee beams topped with a cast-in-place concrete bridge deck. Each beam contained forty-seven 0.6-inch (15.2-mm)-diameter, low-relaxation prestressing strands and no shear reinforcement.
Figure 13. Photo. Mars Hill Bridge, Wapello County, IA
One span of the 10 spans of the Route 624 bridge over Cat Point Creek in Richmond County, VA, was built using UHPC.(45) (See figure 14.) Bulb-tees with a depth of 45 inches (1.14 m) and a length of 81 ft 6 inches (24.8 m) were used. The specified compressive strengths were 12.0 ksi (83 MPa) at release of the strands and 23.0 ksi (159 MPa) for design. The beams did not contain any nonprestressed shear reinforcement.
Figure 14. Photo. Route 64 over Cat Point Creek, Richmond County, VA
Following extensive research and testing by FHWA, a UHPC bridge using pi-shaped girders was constructed in Buchanan County, IA, in 2008.(239,250) (See figure 15.) The shape is named after the Greek letter . The cross section, shown in figure 16, is similar to a double-tee section but with bottom flanges on the outside of each web. Three pi-girders were used in the central 51-ft 4-inch (15.6-m)-long center span of the three-span bridge.
Figure 15. Photo. Jakway Park Bridge, Buchanan County, IA
Figure 16. Illustration. Cross section of pi-shaped girder
In New York State, several bridges have been built using field-cast UHPC to create connections between adjacent precast concrete elements.(241) (See figure 17.) These applications take advantage of the short development lengths that can be used for splice lengths of nonprestressed reinforcement in UHPC. The same technique was used on the transverse joints over the piers of the Keg Creek Bridge, IA, to establish continuity for live load and in the longitudinal joints between deck panels. The use of UHPC in the construction of connections is described by Graybeal.(251)
Figure 17. Illustration. Cross section showing CIP UHPC connection between precast beams
Little Cedar Creek in Wapello County, IA, used 14 UHPC waffle panels for the deck on a 60-ft (18.3-m)-long 33-ft (10.0-m)-wide concrete bridge. (242) The panels were 15 ft by 8 ft by 8 inches deep (4.6 m by 2.4 m by 203 mm deep) at the deepest point, with the waffle squares having a thickness of only 2.5 inches (64 mm). All connections between adjacent panels and from panels to the precast, prestressed concrete beams used UHPC.
The first bridge to use UHPC in Canada was the pedestrian/bikeway bridge in Sherbrooke, Quebec, as shown in figure 18.(2) The structural concept consists of a space truss with a top UHPC chord that serves as the riding surface, two UHPC bottom chords, and truss diagonals that slope in two directions. Each diagonal consists of UHPC confined in 6-inch (152-mm)-diameter stainless steel tubes. The bridge was constructed from six prefabricated match-cast segments with two half-spans assembled prior to erection across the river to create a 197-ft (60-m)-long span.
Source: Lafarge
Figure 18. Photo. Pedestrian bridge, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
Other bridges in Canada that have used UHPC are listed in table 14. The applications include longitudinal and transverse joints between precast components, shear connector pockets between beams and slabs, and a precast post-tensioned tee section for a pedestrian bridge. See Figure 19. Most of the applications have been in Ontario with leadership by the Ministry of Transportation.
Source: Lafarge
Figure 19. Photo. Glenmore/Legsby pedestrian bridge, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
UHPC has been used in bridges in Austria, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and Switzerland as listed in table 15.
Name | Country | Year | Application | Reference (First Author) |
---|---|---|---|---|
WILD bridge, Völkermarkt | Austria | 2010 | Arch bridge with five straight chords | Freytag(252) Hecht(253) |
Bakar bridge | Croatia | — | Arch bridge | Candrlic(254) |
Sermaises footbridge | France | — | U-shaped footbridge with a 30-min fire rating | Behloul(255) |
Bourg-Les-Valence overpass bridges (2) | France | 2001 | Pi-shaped beams (double tee) | Hajar(256) |
PS 34 overpass on the A51 Campenon Bernard | France | 2005 | Precast, post-tensioned segmental single cell box girder | Resplendino (257) |
Sainte Pierre La Cour bridge, Mayenne | France | 2005 | Precast, prestressed I-beams and deck panels | Resplendino (257) |
Pinel bridge, Rouen | France | 2007 | Prestressed beams | de Matteis(258) |
Pont du Diable footbridge | France | 2008 | Prestressed beams and deck to form a U-shape | Behloul(259) |
TGV East High Speed Line, aqueduct | France | — | Post-tensioned U-shape | Resplendino (214) |
Angels footbridge, Herault | France | — | 221-ft span, 5.9 ft-deep section | Resplendino(214) |
Pedestrian/cycle track Niestetal | Germany | — | Post-tensioned trough section | Fehling(260) |
Gaertnerplatz bridge, Kassel | Germany | 2007 | Variable depth space truss | Fehling(260,261) |
Obertiefenbach | Germany | 2007 | Waterproofing layer and hinge | Kim(43) |
Friedberg | Germany | 2007 | Pi-shaped beam | Fehling(260) |
Weinheim | Germany | 2007 | Pi-shaped beam | Fehling(260) |
— | Italy | — | Bridge | Meda(262) |
Rehabilitation of orthotropic bridge deck, Caland | Netherlands | — | Toppings and deck panels | Buitelaar(263) Yuguang(264) |
Kaag bridges, Sassenheim | Netherlands | 2002 | Deck panels | Kaptijn(265) |
Log Cezsoski bridge | Slovenia | 2009 | Bridge deck overlay | Sajna(266) |
Luaterbrunnen footbridge | Switzerland | — | Flooring | Resplendino (267) |
Single span road bridge | Switzerland | 2004 | Rehabilitation and widening of a bridge deck | Brühwiler(268) |
Crash barrier repair | Switzerland | 2006 | Protective surface layer | Brühwiler(268) |
Bridge pier repair | Switzerland | 2007 | Precast panels for a protective layer | Brühwiler(268) |
Various | Various | — | Repair and strengthening | Resplendino(214) |
—Construction date is unknown. |
The Bourg-Les-Valence bridges in France are claimed to be the first UHPC road bridges.(256) Each bridge consists of two spans made continuous with a CIP UHPC connection between spans. The cross section consists of five spliced pretensioned beams that resemble a double-tee with the addition of bottom flanges similar to a pi-shaped section. Beam lengths are 67.3 and 73.8 ft (20.5 and 22.5 m). The only nonprestressed reinforcement is provided where the components are joined together longitudinally or transversely and at locations of attachments. UHPC was used in the longitudinal joints between beams.
The PS34 Overpass on the A51 motorway in France is a precast, post-tensioned, single-cell box girder bridge with a length of 155.5 ft (47.4 m). (257) The cross section has a constant depth of 63 inches (1.60 m), a top slab thickness of 5.5 inches (140 mm), and web and bottom slab thickness of 4.7 inches (120 mm). The bridge is post tensioned longitudinally with six external tendons.
The St. Pierre La Cour bridge in France consists of 10 UHPC precast, prestressed concrete I-beams spaced at 55-inch (1.395-m) centers with a simple span length of 62.3 ft (19 m).(257) The deck consists of 1-inch (25-mm)-thick UHPC precast panels and an 8-inch (200-mm)-thick CIP deck.
According to Fehling, the first UHPC bridges in Germany were built in Niestetal near Kassel with span lengths of 23.0, 29.5, and 39.4 ft (7, 9, and 12 m).(260) The longest span used a shallow trough section and was post tensioned. The other two spans used a pi-shaped section and were pretensioned. Two other bridges using the pi-shaped cross-section were built near Friedberg and Weinheim with span lengths of 39.4 and 59.0 ft (12 and 18 m), respectively.
The Gaertnerplatz bridge, a pedestrian/bicycle bridge across the Fulda River in Kassel, Germany, is a six-span structure with a total length of 437 ft (133.2 m) and a main span of 118 ft (36 m).(261) The structural system is a variable-depth space truss consisting of two top UHPC chords and a single bottom tubular steel chord. The diagonal tubular steel chords are inclined both longitudinally and transversely. The deck spans between and cantilevers beyond the two top chords for a total width of 16.4 ft (5 m). Its thickness varies from 3.1 to 3.9 inches (80 to 100 mm). The deck is glued to the top chords.
In Slovenia, a bridge deck was overlaid with 1 to 1.2 inches (25 to 30 mm) of UHPC.(266) An inspection 2 years after installation showed no damage, cracks, or spalling. Applications in Switzerland include rehabilitation and widening of an existing bridge, protection layers to repair a crash barrier and bridge piers, and flooring for a footbridge.(267,268)
UHPC applications for highway infrastructure in Australia, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, and South Korea are listed in table 16. Descriptions of some of these bridges are provided below.
Name | Country | Year | Application | Reference (First Author) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Shepherds Creek Road bridge, New South Wales | Australia | 2005 | Precast, pretensioned I-beams | Rebentrost(269) Anon(270) Cavill(271) |
Yarra River bridge | Australia | 2008 to 2009 | Noise barrier protection panels | Anon(272) |
Kuyshu Expressway bridge | Japan | — | — | Okuma(273) |
Riverside Senshu footbridge, Nagaoka-shi | Japan | — | Three-span continuous structure | Matsubara(274) |
Sakata-Mirai footbridge, Sakata | Japan | 2002 | Post-tensioned box girder | Rebentrost (269) Resplendino (275) Tanaka(276) |
Akakura Onsen Yukemuri pedestrian bridge |
Japan | 2004 | Prestressed U-shaped girder | Tanaka(276) |
Yamagata | Japan | 2004 | Box girder | Rebentrost(269) |
Tahara bridge Aichi | Japan | 2004 | Box girder | Rebentrost(269) |
Horikoshi Highway C-ramp Fukuoka | Japan | 2005 | Composite I-girder | Rebentrost(269) Tanaka(276) |
Keio University footbridge, Tokyo | Japan | 2005 | Pretensioned slab | Rebentrost(269) Tanaka(276) |
Torisaka, River Highway bridge, Hokkaido | Japan | 2006 | Launching nose | Rebentrost(269) |
Toyota City Gymnasium footbridge, Aichi | Japan | 2007 | Box girder | Tanaka(276) |
Sankin-ike footbridge, Fukuoka | Japan | 2007 | Box girder | Rebentrost(269) |
Hikita pedestrian bridge, Tottori | Japan | 2007 | U-shaped girder | Rebentrost(269) |
Haneda Airport Runway D, Tokyo | Japan | 2007 | Precast, pretensioned slabs | Rebentrost(269) Tanaka(276) |
Mikaneike footbridge. Fukuoka | Japan | 2007 | U-shaped girder | Musha(277) |
Kobe Sanda premium outlet footbridge | Japan | 2008 | U-shaped girder | Tanaka(276) |
Akasaka Yogenzaka footbridge | Japan | 2009 | U-shaped girder | Tanaka(276) |
Torisalogawa bridge | Japan | 2006 | Box girder | Tanaka(276) |
Tokyo Monorail | Japan | 2007 | U-girder upside down | Tanaka(276) |
GSE bridge Tokyo Airport | Japan | 2008 | U-girders | Tanaka(276) |
Kampung Linsum bridge Rantau, Negeri Seremban | Malaysia | — | U-beam | Lei(278) Voo(150) |
Sungai Muar bridge | Malaysia | — | Curved saddles for cable stays | Resplendino(275) |
Papatoetoe footbridge | New Zealand | 2005 | Pi-beam | Anon(279) |
Five pedestrian bridges, Auckland | New Zealand | 2006 to 2007 | Precast, post-tensioned Pi-girder | Rebentrost(269) Anon(279) |
Seonyu Sunyudo footbridge, Seoul (Peace Bridge) | South Korea | 2002 | Precast, post-tensioned pi-section | Rebentrost(269) Resplendino(275) |
Office pedestrian bridge | South Korea | 2009 | Cable-stayed bridge | Kim(9) |
— Data are unknown. |
The Shepherds Creek bridge in Australia is a single 49-ft (15-m)-span bridge with a 16-degree skew.(269,271) The superstructure consists of sixteen 23.6-inch (600-mm)-deep precast, prestressed UHPC beams spaced at 51 inch (1.3 m) centers. These support 1-inch (25-mm)-thick precast UHPC panels and a 6.7-inch (170-mm)-thick CIP reinforced concrete deck.
Numerous bridges, as listed in table 16, have been constructed in Japan beginning with the Sakata-Mirai bridge in 2002.(269,276) (See figure 20.) This footbridge consists of pretensioned box girder segments that were post tensioned together to form a single span of 161 ft (49.2 m).
Most of the UHPC footbridges in Japan consist of precast segmental U-beams with a separate top slab that is integrally connected to the U-beam. The U-beam segments are connected longitudinally with a CIP joint and post tensioning.
The Horikoshi Highway C-Ramp bridge was Japan's first highway bridge using UHPC.(276) The composite girder bridge is composed of four pretensioned UHPC I-shaped girders and a conventional CIP concrete deck. The use of UHPC in the girders allowed reduction of the number of girders from 11 to 4. The weight of each girder was less than it would have been with conventional concrete, allowing the use of a smaller crane. The overall weight of the bridge was reduced by 30 percent.
Source: Lafarge
Figure 20. Photo. Sakata-Mirai bridge, Sakata, Japan
The Toyota Gymnasium footbridge is a two-cell segmental box girder using match-cast segments and dry joints with epoxy. To overcome the shortening caused by autogenous shrinkage of the lead segment before casting the next segment, a steel plate was used at the end of the lead segment and becomes the end form for the new segment.(276)
The construction of Runway D at Tokyo's Haneda International Airport used 9.8-inch (250-mm)-deep UHPC panels spanning between longitudinal steel girders above the Tamar River.(276) The panels consist of ribs supporting a slab with a minimum thickness of 3 inches (75 mm). This reduced the dead load of the slab by about 56 percent compared with conventional concrete. Approximately 6,900 panels were produced for this application.
The Sunyudo (Peace) footbridge in South Korea is an arch bridge with a main span of 394 ft (120 m).(275) (See figure 21.) It is built from six precast, post-tensioned pi-shaped sections 4.3 ft (1.30 m) deep. The upper flange is a ribbed slab 1.19 inches (30 mm) thick with transverse prestressing. The webs of the pi-shaped section are 6.35 inches (160 mm) thick and inclined outward at the bottom. The six precast sections are post tensioned together by tendons located in the upper and lower haunches of the section. This bridge is the longest span UHPC bridge in the world.
Source: Rualt Philippe
Figure 21. Photo. Footbridge of Peace, Seoul, South Korea
Significant research and development efforts have also occurred with regard to the potential security applications afforded by UHPC. Infrastructure security can be a critical consideration, thus leading to opportunities to use UHPC components either as barrier protection systems or as inherent portions of the critical infrastructure. A state-of-the-art report on fiber-reinforced UHPC with a focus on security applications was completed in 2010.(280)
Research on the mechanical properties of UHPC when subjected to high strain rate loading has been completed by Parent et al., Ngo et al., Millard et al., Habel and Gauvreau, and Millon et al. (See references281, 282, 283, 284, and 285.) Blast resistance testing has been reported by Wu et al., Ngo et al., and Rebentrost and Wight. (See references 286, 282, 287, and 288.) Penetration resistance tests have been reported by Rebentrost and Wight(287,288) and by Nöldgen et al.(289)
This section identifies other potential applications found during the literature search.
Almansour and Lounis compared the design of a prestressed concrete girder bridge using either UHPC or HPC in the girders.(290) The design of the UHPC bridge was based on a combination of the Canadian Highway Bridge Design Code (CHBDC) and the AFGC-IR-02. (291,4) The design of the HPC bridge was based only on the CHBDC. Both bridges had a span length of 147.6 ft (45 m). Five girders with a depth of 63 inches (1,600 mm) were required for the HPC bridge, and only four girders with a depth of either 35.4 inches (900 mm) or 47.2 inches (1200 mm) were required for the UHPC bridge. The 47.2-inch (1,200-mm)-deep girders represented a conservative design, whereas the shallower sections required more prestressing strands. An optimum solution would be a girder with a depth between 35 and 47 inches (900 and 1,200 mm).
The design of a pilot project for a 39-ft (12-m) span pedestrian bridge using composite steel-concrete construction was reported by Jungwith et al. (188)
Obata et al. examined the use of prefabricated UHPC panels 1.2 inches (30 mm) thick as an overlay for asphalt pavement.(292) The panels were bonded to the asphalt using a grout. About 517 ft2 (48 m2) of test pavement was constructed at a test track in Japan using different construction bonding procedures. No cracks were observed before load testing began. Delaminations occurred and increased with the number of wheel passes in some test sections. The authors concluded that early opening of the pavement to traffic is possible with the use of high-strength fast-curing grout.
Oesterlee et al. performed finite element analyses of a conceptual bridge girder using UHPC as an overlay material in place of a conventional waterproofing membrane.(293) The structural response under combined loading from restrained shrinkage and traffic loads showed stresses close to the elastic tensile strength of the UHPC overlay where there was a high degree of restraint. The risk of transverse cracking in the overlay was deemed unlikely.
Schafers and Seim described theoretical and experimental investigations into the composite behavior of UHPC decks on timber beams.(294) They conducted shear tests of the glued joint between the UHPC and timber to identify the best adhesives and timber surface preparation methods.
Using finite element modeling and experimental verification, Toutlemende et al. investigated the possible use of UHPC precast ribbed waffle slabs for a bridge deck.(175) The slabs were pretensioned in the transverse direction and then post tensioned longitudinally before being connected to the longitudinal steel girders. The test results were compared with analytical models.(295)
Vande Voort et al. explored the use of UHPC in H-shaped precast, prestressed concrete piles.(296) They used laboratory tests to verify moment-curvature response. Two piles were successfully driven into clay soils and tested under vertical and lateral loads. (See figure 22.) The impact resistance of UHPC for use in piles was investigated by Leonhardt et al.(127)
Source: Iowa State University
Figure 22. Photo. Experimental precast pile made of UHPC
Other potential applications that have been investigated are listed in table 17.
Application | Reference (First Author) |
---|---|
Drill bits for special foundation engineering | Ibuk(297) |
Sewer pipes | Schmidt(298) |
Precast spun columns and poles | Adam(299), Müller(300) |
Barrier walls | Young(249) |
Field-cast thin-bonded overlays | Young(249), Sritharan(301), Shann(302 ), Schmidt(303), Scheffler(55) |
Cable-stayed bridge superstructure | Kim(9), Park(304) |
Bridge bearings | Hoffmann(305) |
Precast tunnel segments | Randl(306) |
Seismic retrofit of bridge columns | Massicotte(307) |