Webinar: Suspension Bridge: Basic and Advanced Concepts and Structural Evaluation
Author: Avinash Prasad
A suspension bridge is a special type of bridge in which loads from the bridge deck are carried by vertical suspenders that are supported by suspension cables suspended between towers and anchored at both ends of the bridge.
Many suspension bridges throughout the U.S. and around the world are showing signs of distress due to aging and improper repair or rehabilitation or lack of proper maintenance. Extending the service life of aging suspension bridges is very important for the transportation industry.
This Live Webinar course covers the basic concepts in the field of suspension bridges. We begin by defining the major components of a bridge with an emphasis on suspension bridges. The webinar will also cover the structural evaluation of a bridge, the uniqueness of suspension bridges in comparison to other types of bridges and how to increase the service life of a suspension bridge.
This course covers the following topics:
- The major components of a suspension bridge and how suspension bridges compare to other types of bridges
- Suspension bridge inspection methods, including the benefits of NDT compared to conventional visual inspection
- Suspension bridge structural failure causes and mitigations
- Rail-specific information that is relevant to structural evaluation of suspension bridges carrying railroad traffic and/or vehicular traffic
Normally visual inspections (including 100% hands-on inspection of fracture critical fatigue prone details) are done for structural evaluation of critical components of a suspension bridge. The concept of NDT (non-destructive testing) as applied to suspension bridges and the benefits of NDT compared to conventional visual inspection will be discussed along with innovative structural evaluation techniques for suspension bridges.
The various concepts of FLAGS (Structural and Safety) along with various types of inspections of suspension bridges will be discussed with illustrative examples.
The second half of the webinar covers advanced concepts in the field of suspension bridges. Structural failure of a suspension bridge may be a combination of poor design, construction, maintenance, failure to thoroughly inspect fracture-critical and fatigue-prone details, severe weather conditions or a combination of all these factors.
The webinar includes defining fracture-critical and fatigue-prone details along with a comparison of highway and railroad loading on suspension bridges. The discussion reviews the reasons for structural failure of suspension bridges and structural problems of New York state suspension bridges carrying highway and railroad traffic.
Suspension bridges are more susceptible to vibration due to flexibility compared to other rigid bridges. In design, there are variations in the type of vehicular and railroad live load. The dynamic effect of railroad traffic is more significant than vehicular traffic on a suspension bridge. Railroad traffic can be allowed on a suspension bridge under specific circumstances. The webinar includes rail-specific information that is relevant to structural evaluation of suspension bridges carrying railroad traffic and/or vehicular traffic.
A special topic is included on bridge assets management (BAM) along with its need for safe and efficient management of bridge systems. The discussion will include risk rating and condition rating and correlation between condition rating and risk rating. Additional details include Weibull distribution function and how statistical data analysis is performed using the Weibull distribution function. One of the special features of BAM is the use of Bridge Maintenance Agency decision makers in forecasting the degradation rate of their bridge system. This webinar will cover existing/new structural evaluation techniques of suspension bridges based on the instructor’s personal structural evaluation experience of high-rise suspension bridges.
Learning Objectives
This Live Webinar course is intended to provide you with the following specific knowledge and skills:
- The major components of a suspension bridge
- What is structural evaluation of a bridge?
- Uniqueness of suspension bridges in comparison to other types of bridges
- How to increase the service life of a suspension bridge
- Concept of FLAGS
- Various types of inspections of suspension bridges
- NDT (non-destructive testing) as applied to suspension bridges
- Benefits of NDT (non-destructive testing) compared to conventional inspection
- Fracture-critical and fatigue-prone details of a suspension bridge
- Comparison of highway and railroad loading on suspension bridges
- Reasons for structural failure of suspension bridges
- Structural problems of New York state suspension bridges carrying highway and railroad traffic
- Innovative structural evaluation techniques of suspension bridges
- What is bridge asset management (BAM) and why is it required?
- The limitations of the current/previous BAM
- What is risk rating and condition rating in BAM?
- Correlation between condition rating and risk rating
- What is a Weibull distribution function?
- How statistical data analysis is performed using the Weibull distribution function
- How earlier research can be used by Bridge Maintenance Agency decision makers in forecasting the degradation rate of their bridge systems
Note: This is a live webinar delivered via GoToMeeting. Login instructions will be emailed to you 24-48 hours prior to the webinar and the morning of the webinar. If you have not received your instructions for any reason please call customer support the day of the event. Webinars are live and interactive and students will have the ability to directly interact with and ask questions of the presenter.
We provide technical courses for PDH credits that meet Board requirements for Professional Engineers, Geologists and Land Surveyors. This course is guaranteed to be accepted in AK, AL, AR, FL, GA, IA, IL, ID, IN, KS, KY, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WI, WV, and WY. Before purchasing this course, please confirm that your state Board is listed above.
