Non-Destructive Strength Evaluation of a Continuous, Reinforced Concrete Slab Bridge

by David V. J?uregui,
Alicia Licon-Lozano,



Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Structures Congress 2008: Crossing Borders

Abstract:

In the state of New Mexico, a significant number of reinforced concrete slab (RCS) bridges provide service on interstate highways I-10, I-25, and I-40 that are subjected to large amounts of heavy truck traffic. Because of the state's need to provide an efficient and safe highway system to the trucking industry, an accurate strength evaluation of slab bridges is essential to avoid unnecessary load restrictions. The AASHTO load rating factor for this type of bridge mainly depends on the live-load moment per foot of slab width. Accordingly, the main objective of this study was to determine a more accurate value for the equivalent strip width (using higher level techniques including diagnostic load testing and finite element analysis) for use in the AASHTO rating analysis. An increase in the equivalent strip width decreases the live-load effects thereby increasing the load rating factor. Previous studies have shown that RCS bridges have a more favorable load distribution compared to AASHTO approximate methods when evaluated using higher level techniques [1, 2, 3].

Subject Headings: Concrete bridges | Reinforced concrete | Load tests | Slabs | Load factors | Highway bridges | Load distribution | New Mexico | United States

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