Application of Ultra High Performance Concrete in Expediting the Replacement and Rehabilitation of Highway Bridges

Abstract

In Northwestern Ontario, the construction season is too narrow to complete the replacement and rehabilitation work of highway bridges using traditional cast-in-place concrete structural elements. In addition, the bridges built with cast in place concrete structural elements failed to exhibit durability. These cast-in-place concrete elements were disintegrating and severely scaled. To ensure long term durability and to accelerate construction of highway bridges, the Ontario Ministry of Transportation, in the Northwestern Region, started to incorporate precast prestressed concrete elements. The challenge in using these precast elements was to identify a reliable connection system to be installed among the precast elements. This paper presents examples of where Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) was used for field cast longitudinal joints in precast prestressed adjacent concrete box girders and field cast joints and shear pockets in full depth precast deck panels. In addition, the details of a pier column shell and inverted T shaped pier cap built using UHPC are presented in this paper.