Comparative Evaluation of Crack Width for Reinforced Concrete Bridge Deck

Cracking in reinforced concrete bridge decks is a massively concern in the India. Many concrete bridge decks, inobservant to the age of construction, have shown different levels and patterns of cracking. Not only does cracking of bridge decks weaken the bridge infrastructure, but also allows the inflow of corrosive agents into the reinforcement. In this study, the crack width evaluation of RC bridge deck of span of 5 m. and 9 m. is based on equations given by IRS Concrete Bridge Code 1997 for different cases like- the effect of depth variation, reinforcement diameter, clear cover, variation in live load moment, spacing of tension reinforcement and different no. of tension reinforcement bar to constant width for the same crosssection. This study concluded that crack width increases with increase in clear cover, variation in live load moment and spacing of tension reinforcement while it decreases with increase in reinforcement diameter, depth of the bridge deck and number of reinforced bars and percentage change evaluation of different parameter of 5m and 9m span bridge deck. Keyword: Crack Width, Cracking, Bridge Deck Slab, Crack Spacing.