Shear Stress Analysis of Long-Span Steel Bridge Deck Asphalt Pavement Using FEM

Abstract

Asphalt pavements have been widely used to protect the steel bridge deck against moisture and provide good riding quality. However, various types of distresses especially rutting have been observed frequently in bridge deck asphalt layers. Therefore it is necessary to understand the mechanics behavior of asphalt layer in the steel bridge deck. In this paper, finite element model for bridge deck with asphalt layers have been setup. Then shear stresses have been analyzed in the various cases using finite element method. The results show that the most disadvantage position locates above the diaphragm plate outer side. The shear stress between layers decreases with the increase of the asphalt layer thickness, the peak shear stress increases either. The thin surface layer has its advantage with the requirement of the minimum paving thickness if bonding properly. Comparison with the common pavement structure, the maximum shear stress in the bridge deck pavement could be affected by the type of loading more significant.