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1
PBS&J, 4030 West Boy Scout Boulevard, Tampa, Florida 33607; PH (813)282-7275;
FAX (813)282-8155; email: bhu@pbsj.com
2
PBS&J, 4030 West Boy Scout Boulevard, Tampa, Florida 33607; PH (813)282-7275;
FAX (813)282-8155; email: mgghali@pbsj.com
ABSTRACT
Due to the severe curvature and narrow box girder width, along with small
ratios of the anchor span to the main span at many locations of the I-4 Connector, the
use of two bearings per box resulted in a significant uplift. PBS&J investigated
several alternatives including outriggers and modifications to the erection sequence to
eliminate the uplifting. Most of the options investigated were expensive, not practical
or aesthetically not pleasing. With the cooperation of the FDOT central office, a
single pot bearing support was introduced at the end of the anchor span for certain
units. This paper will discuss the approach of the design, several implemented details,
and the limitation of the proposed method.
INTRODUCTION
(a) Bearing Reaction Due to Dead Load (b) Bearing Reaction Due to Post-
Tensioning
in which ்ܯis the torsional moment, ܦ is the bearing distance, and R is the
compressive bearing reaction due to the shear force.
other is to increase the bearing distance, and the third is to reduce the torsional
moment.
Increasing the bearing compressive reaction usually means to have unnecessary
dead load, such as balance weights. Using a heavier material in the end span than in
the intermediate spans would also provide this benefit. However, the complexity of
the connection often outweighs the benefits, and therefore this approach is feasible
only in certain types of long-span bridges.
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When the bottom slab soffit is not wide enough to provide sufficient bearing
distances to reduce the uplifting force, using outriggers is a common technique for
increasing bearing distance. Although it is an effective method the disadvantages are
obvious. It will increase the construction cost, increase the complexity of the detailing,
and cause additional rebar and/or PT duct congestion in the diaphragm.
Torsional moment at the bearing locations can be adjusted by using different
bearing layouts. Figure 2 shows two typical bearing layouts for curved box girder
bridges. In Figure 2 (a), each bearing location has a torsion resistant bearing system,
therefore each bearing needs to be checked against uplifting. This layout is usually
adopted in bridges with large radius and relatively long span length, so all bearings
can contribute to resist the applied torsional moment. In Figure 2 (b), only two end
bearings are torsion resistant, and all the intermediate bearings provide only vertical
support. The Figure 2 (b) layout eliminates the torsional moment and therefore the
uplifting issues for the intermediate bearings, and is often used in bridges with tight
curvatures. It should be noted that in this layout the two end bearings sometimes
require outriggers to take the torsional moments.
(a) (b)
The unit 9-1 of I-4/Lee Roy Selmon Express Connector, the first unit of Ramp
S (Bridge 9), is a five span continuous girder bridge with constant single box section.
The typical section is 30 feet, 1 inch in width, and 9 feet, one half inch in depth,
which includes one half inch sacrificial thickness, as shown in Figure 3. The span
layout was determined by ground constraints and is 113ft+180ft+178ft+178+112 ft.
The radius of the unit alignment is 612.5 feet.
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LARSA 4D, which include 3-D post-tensioning effect, construction stage analysis,
and time dependent effects. Figure 5 shows the 3D FEM model of the bridge.
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solution is needed to present an economical design and have least impact on design
and construction consistency.
Considering the deck width of the section, a single bearing solution at the ends
was adopted in the final design. The solution is to use a single multi-rotational
bearing instead of a typical two bearing system underneath the two webs. It provides
a torsion free support; therefore no torsional uplifting will develop in the bearing.
Figure 6 shows the three views of the end diaphragm and the end bent.
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To investigate if using the proposed single bearing support at the bridge ends,
instead of typical two bearing supports, will cause any significant change in the
structural behaviors of the superstructure, Figure 7 presents the comparison of
torsional moment, bending moment, and shear force distributions in both cases. It can
be observed that using one bearing at the ends greatly reduces the torsional moment
in the end spans. Even with torsional moment increase in certain locations, it tends to
balance the magnitude of torsional moment in different directions. Bending moment
is slightly increased mainly in intermediate spans, and will not significantly change
the design. Shear force distribution among these two bearing layouts are almost
identical. Therefore, using single bearing at the bridge ends will not cause
unfavorable change in the superstructure design.
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With the single bearing adopted at the bridge ends, the maximum service
bearing reaction is 848 kips. The maximum service rotation at the bearing location is
0.008 radian, much lower than the capacity of 0.03 radian. The maximum deflection
at the exterior design lane center due to section rotation is 0.34 inch.
DETAILING
The detailing of the end diaphragms with single bearing need to be modified to
accommodate the change in geometry and load transfer path. The Florida Department
of Transportation (FDOT) Structure Design Guidelines require a minimum access
As two bearings are reduced to one, the load transfer path at the end
diaphragm is also changed. Figure 9 shows the strut-and-tie models of the top
reinforcement design for typical diaphragms and diaphragms with single bearing. For
single bearing diaphragms, the shear force in the webs is transferred to the bearing in
an angle of 40º, much smaller than the 55º angle in typical two bearing diaphragms,
which results in 70% increase of the tensile force in the top tie. Two 12 strand and
one 4 strand 270ksi post-tensioning tendons are provided in the design to resist the
tensile force.
REFERENCES