Bridge Design – Shallow Foundations Shallow foundations, also known as(spread footings, are advantageous to pile foundations considering lower cost, easier construction, and fewer environmental constraints. However, weak soil and seismic considerations may limit use of spread footings and impact the foundation type selection.In general, size of the spread footing is determined based on bearing resistance…
Bridge Design – Concrete Columns Columns are structural elements that support the superstructure, transfer vertical loads from superstructure to foundation, and resist the lateral loads acting on the bridge due to seismic and various service loads. This course presents an overview of concrete column design. It discusses design loads and design criteria including the three…
Bridge Design – Concrete Bent Caps A bent consisting of columns and a bent cap beam is an intermediate support between bridge spans that transfers and resists vertical loads and lateral loads such as earthquake and wind from the superstructure to the foundation. The bent cap beam supports the longitudinal girders and transfers the loads…
Bridge Design – Steel Plate Girders Girder bridges are structurally the simplest and the most commonly used on short to medium span bridges. Steel I-section is the simplest and most effective solid section for resisting bending and shear. In this course straight composite steel-concrete plate girder bridges are discussed. Design considerations for span and framing…
Bridge Design – Structural Modeling and Analysis Structural analysis is a process to analyze a structural system to predict its responses and behaviors by using physical laws and mathematical equations. The main objective of structural analysis is to determine internal forces, stresses and deformations of structures under various load effects. This course summarizes the guidelines…
Bridge Design – Loads and Load Combinations Properly identifying bridge loading is fundamental to the design of each component. Bridge design is iterative in the sense that member sizes are a function of loads and loads are a function of member sizes. It is, therefore, necessary to begin by proportioning members based on prior experience…