Bridge Assessment under Earthquake and Flood-Induced Scour

Abstract

Earthquakes and floods in Albania are devastating, but combining these two different hazards in terms of action on bridge structures may lead the bridge to collapse. This article presents a seismic risk assessment of a code-conforming precast reinforced concrete bridge located in a region prone to earthquakes and where local scour induced by floods is a significant concern. The seismic action is considered using a group of ground motion accelerograms generated by matching the accelerogram of the 29 November 2019 earthquake in Durres (M = 6.4), Albania, to the target response spectrum. The scouring effects on the bents of the bridge are characterized by the scour depths. A set of non-linear time-history analyses of the bridge are performed to assess the bridge’s performance. The bridge fragility curves are generated and analyzed for multi-hazard scenarios at both element and system levels for different flow discharge values and PGA levels. The result shows a low seismic risk of the bridge with bearings when considering the local scour induced by flood events in the seismic analysis due to their flexibility to adapt to changes in structure geometry and significant foundation stiffness. This research also emphasizes the significance of choosing the right foundation type and depth for bridges located in areas prone to local scour induced by floods.