A Laboratory Test of UHPC Connection for Precast Bridge Deck

Abstract

The demand for enhancing concrete performance in bridge engineering facilitates the research and development of Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC). In view of the excellent mechanical features of UHPC, some attempts have been made concerning the application of UHPC in precast bridge deck connections. If UHPC adopted as connection in the erection of precast bridge deck, the site welding of loop bars or even the application of them could be omitted, which would shorten the construction period by a large margin and furthermore guarantee the quality of precast bridge deck integrally. In current study, a type of UHPC with high strength, high tenacity and low shrinkage was utilized in cast-in-place connections and relevant experimental studies on full-scale model of UHPC connections are conducted as well. The study is mainly concentrated on the influence of UHPC connections on the working performance of the entire bridge deck under static loading, and the results are compared with that in the one-time cast-in-place bridge decks. The evaluation results show that, when UHPC connection are applied, the failure of structures always existed in and derived from the precast common concrete while connection failure does not occur. In terms of bridge decks performance, the ultimate flexural strength is increased remarkably and the deformation performance is improved as well.