Management of Bridge Structures – Challenges and Possibilities

<p>Bridges are particularly vulnerable elements of transport infrastructures. In many cases, bridge structures may be subject to higher volumes of traffic and higher loads as well as more severe environmental conditions than it was designed. Sound procedures to ensure monitoring, quality control, and preventive maintenance systems are therefore vital. The paper presents main challenges and arriving possibilities in management of bridge structures, including: relationships between environment and bridge infrastructure, improvement of diagnostic technologies, advanced modelling of bridges in computer-based management systems, development of knowledge-based expert systems with application of artificial intelligence, applications of technology of Bridge Information Modelling (BrIM) with augmented and virtual reality techniques. Presented activities are focused on monitoring the safety of bridges for lowering the risk of an unexpected collapse significantly as well as on efficient maintenance of bridges as components of transport infrastructure − by means of integrated management systems.</p>

Stefan Bryła – Polish Creator of the First Welded Road Bridges

<p>The first two welded road bridges in Poland were designed by Stefan Bryła, Professor at the technological universities in Lwów and later in Warsaw. The bridges became operational in 1929 and 1931, respectively. The first bridge is of a truss structure and is the first welded structure of this type in Europe, and indeed the world’s first road welded truss bridge. It became a listed monument in 1968. It was in service up to 1977, when it was relocated due to insufficient horizontal clearance. The second bridge is of a plate girder structure and it is still operational. The two welded road bridges are located over the Słudwia river near Łowicz, central Poland. In 2019, ninety years have passed since the first welded bridge in Poland became operational, while December 2018 saw the 75th anniversary of Professor Stefan Bryła’s tragic death. To mark these occasions, this paper briefly presents the Professor’s design and structural work, and discusses the stories of the first two welded bridges in Poland.</p>

Outstanding Civil Engineering Structures Built in Poland

<p>The development of civil engineering in Poland over 1000 years was discussed. Particular attention was paid to outstanding innovative constructions created after World War II. Innovative buildings, halls, stadiums, masts, high-rises and bridges were presented. It was in Poland where the first welded steel road bridge in Europe and the highest mast in the world were built. Europe's largest extradosed and innovative arched and composite bridges have been built recently.</p>

Bridge Aesthetics – Functional and Structural Needs versus Architectural Imagination

<p>Relations between structural form as well as service function of bridges and their aesthetics are analysed. Irrespective of their scale bridges always affect their surroundings or landscape. Therefore, they not only have an engineering and economic meaning but also a social and a cultural one. In some cases, especially older bridges have an additional symbolic or a historic meaning. Contemporary trends concerning bridge aesthetics are discussed. Commonly modern bridge structures ideas are controversial – their forms often seem to be more important than their service function and classical aesthetic principles are rather rarely observed. Presented problems are exemplified by bridge structures in Poland and in other countries. Conclusions concerning the relations between the bridge aesthetics and bridge function are formulated. Some remarks on the future trends in the bridge engineering are also presented.</p>

Condition Assessment, Monitoring and Preservation of Some Iconic Concrete Structures of the 20th Century

<p>Great architects and structural engineers such as Berg (1870-1947), Maillart (1872-1940), Freyssinet (1879- 1962), Torroja (1899 -1961), Nervi (1891-1979), Candela (1910-1997), Isler (1926-2009) and many others have designed recognized works of art in their discipline. They conceived extraordinary concrete spatial structures, that are located mostly in Europe and represent a unique legacy. It is important to raise awareness of this heritage, define the criteria for preserving it and begin the process of its renovation and rehabilitation. <p> While concrete has become a 20th century emblem, much of the world’s heritage from this period is unrecognized or undervalued, and therefore it is at risk and in need of analysis and protection. Innovative technologies and solutions are needed that contribute to the successful reuse of modern concrete built heritage. Indeed, such structures are plagued by significant deterioration and most of them are in urgent need of retrofitting and/or radical refurbishment. In other words, there is a need to bring some of these buildings back to life, while respecting the spirit of their original characters, through new technologies for long-term conservation that can maintain an adequate level of structural performance. Achieving this goal would produce substantial economic impacts through activities such as restoration, maintenance, and cultural industry. <p> The keynote lecture, more specifically, focuses on the condition assessment, monitoring and preservation of 20th century architectural heritage characterized by a complex spatial structural design. The service life of civil and cultural heritage concrete spatial structures is typically thought to range from 10 to 200 years, but in practice the service environment plays a pivotal role in sustained durability. Indeed, the collapse of Polcevera Viaduct in Genoa has raised strong concerns on the durability of concrete structures conceived at that time. The scientific community has once again underlined the important role played by maintenance and continuous structural health monitoring in avoiding these disastrous events. In order to demonstrate a correct approach to condition monitoring of concrete spatial buildings and bridges, some important experiences are described that were recently obtained at the Polytechnic of Turin on the structural analysis, seismic vulnerability and condition assessment for iconic 20th century heritage buildings.

Towards Sustainable Timber Construction Through the Application of Wood-Wood Connections

<p>This paper introduces a series of sustainable timber construction using wood-wood connections, which are driven from environmental requirements. These constructions are based on geometries like origami and free-form instead of standard structural elements. In addition, to predict the structural behaviour, the simplified numerical methods for accurately modelling are used. The aim of these case studies is to better explore the value of wood-wood connections as inheritance of ancient culture and extend research on their integration into design processes. Through the design, manufacturing and assembly stage, the connections are investigated as a driver for architectural forms. The utilisation of these innovative connections with minimised metal connectors ensures the rapid, precise and simple assembly process. With in-depth study and innovation of the ancient wood-wood connections, experience in prefabricated timber structure not only offers new geometrical opportunities, but also expands the understanding of integration of ancient and modern cultures.</p>

Novel Structural Engineering Technologies to Serve Heritage Bridges

<p>Bridges of high cultural value and aesthetic quality deserve respectful treatment, and consequently, construction interventions must balance these assets with the severe requirements of utilisation. This is particularly relevant to structural engineers and bridge owners involved in rehabilitation or modification interventions. This paper presents examples of how interventions are performed with adequate respect to cultural value. It is argued that the preservation of cultural value may go hand-in-hand with socio-economic, environmental and technical requirements following the principles of sustainable development. These requirements are met through the application of advanced structural engineering methods, including monitoring of structural behaviour and using the UHPFRC Technology. Extending the service duration means adding value to bridges as well as appreciating the art of structural engineering and the identity of structural engineers.</p>

Challenge for Next Generation of Concrete Bridges, Non-Metallic Bridge with Zero Cement Concrete

Concrete engineers and researchers have been developed durable reinforce concrete technologies for long time. However, we have not reached the goal which gives us a perfect technology against deterioration of reinforced concrete. Basically concrete itself is high durable material. And we recognize this fact when we see Roman concrete structures are still working now. The technologies described in this paper are the challenge to derive the solution against deterioration of reinforced concrete. This research and development has been taking for about 30 years. Then a non-metallic highway bridge is under design and will be built in 2020 with the key technologies of aramid fiber tendons, fiber reinforced concrete and butterfly web.

Long-Term Movement Behaviour of Bridge Bearings and Expansion Joints From SHM Data

<p>Accumulated movements induced by temperature and imposed loads contribute to the wearing down of the sliding materials within bridge bearings and expansion joints, potentially seriously affecting their functioning and performance. Therefore, there is a need for engineers to be able to assess, with some accuracy, the total movements to which these critical components, and their sliding materials in particular, are being subjected (or have been subjected during their service life to date). These movements are difficult to calculate analytically and design codes generally provide very conservative load models which increases the challenge of accurately estimating true movements. Nowadays, structural health monitoring can be used to record these movements with high accuracy, providing data that can support more efficient life-cycle planning of bridge maintenance. This paper illustrates this with reference to the measurement of longitudinal movements on expansion joints and bearings of various bridge structures.</p>

Anchorage Capacity and Performance in Plain and Steel-Fibre-Reinforced Concrete

<p>Nowadays, prefabricated concrete components made from Steel-Fiber-Reinforced Concrete (SFRC) are widely used in the construction industry. These components are often connected to existing or new structural elements through various fastening systems. Previous studies have shown that the addition of steel fibers to concrete mixture substantially improves the fracture properties of concrete. To date, however, rather limited research is available on the behavior of fastening systems in SFRC. To improve the current knowledge of fastening systems to SFRC structures, a pilot experimental study is carried out on cast-in-place anchor bolts embedded in Plain Concrete (PC) and SFRC members. In this study, the influence of the presence of steel fibers and concrete compressive strength on the anchorage capacity and performance is evaluated. Furthermore, the applicability of current design methods is evaluated for anchorage systems in SFRC.</p>