Title: Long-span hybrid precast concrete bridge girder using ultra-high-performance concrete and normalweight concrete
Date Published: November - December 2019
Volume: 64
Issue: 6
Page Numbers: 45 - 61
Authors: Vidya Sagar Ronanki, Sriram Aaleti, and J. P. Binard
https://doi.org/10.15554/pcij64.6-02

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Abstract

Ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) is an engineered cementitious material with superior mechanical and durability properties compared with normalweight concrete (NWC). By taking advantage of these enhanced properties, a long-span hybrid girder design using standard girder shapes with UHPC in the end zone regions is proposed. Experimental studies were carried out to investigate the behavior of a UHPC-to-NWC interface with 0.2 in. (5 mm) roughness under shear and flexural loading. The results of the experimental studies were used to calibrate the necessary parameters required for developing a three-dimensional (3-D) finite element analysis (FEA) model for a hybrid girder. Structural performance of a 205 ft (62.5 m) long, 95 in. (2400 mm) deep Precast Concrete Economical Fabrication Committee standard bulb-tee (PCEF-95) hybrid girder was investigated using 3-D FEA models and compared with a girder designed with NWC. The hybrid girder exhibited better performance in terms of end zone cracking compared with the traditional concrete girder. Significant reduction in shear and end zone reinforcement was achieved in the hybrid girder compared with the NWC girder. The details regarding the feasibility of the proposed hybrid girder concept, the results from the interface tests, and the FEA study are presented in this paper.