Shear distribution in simply supported skew composite bridges

Abstract

Composite steel–concrete bridges remain one of the most common types built. Proper design of new bridges and evaluation of existing bridges requires accurate prediction of their structural response to truck loads. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials has traditionally applied a load distribution factor for both moment and shear. The Ontario Highway Bridge Design Code (OHBDC) considers several parameters in establishing load distribution factors for moment. However, the method is limited to bridges with skew parameters less than a certain value specified in the code. The presence of skew reduces the longitudinal moments in the girders. However, it also causes high concentration of shear in the girder closest to the obtuse corner and reduces shear concentration in the girder closest to the acute corner as well as in the interior girders. Therefore, shear should be considered in the design of such bridges. In this paper, the influence of skew on the shear distribution factor is investigated. The influences of other factors such as girder spacing, bridge aspect ratio, number of lanes, number of girders, end diaphragms, and intermediate cross-beams are presented. An experimental program was conducted on six simply supported skew composite steel–concrete bridge models. Results from a finite element analysis showed excellent agreement with the experimental results. An extensive parametric study was conducted on prototype composite bridges subjected to OHBDC truck loading. The parametric study included more than 400 cases. The data generated were used to develop empirical formulas for shear distribution factors for OHBDC truck loading and also for dead load. An illustrative example is presented. Key words: bridges, codes of practice, composite, distribution, reaction, reinforced concrete, shear, skew, structural engineering, tests.