Bracing for composite box girder bridges

Abstract

For steel–concrete composite box girder bridges, the steelwork is generally erected first and then the concrete deck cast. During construction the girder may be subjected to a variety of construction loads. If the girder is a flexible open section, and lacks distortional or torsional stiffness, the cross section will deform or twist excessively; such difficulties with box girder construction have been reported. Bracing systems should be installed to increase the torsional and distortional stiffness of the open section during construction. A finite strip analysis of the influence of bracing systems on open section box girders is presented and compared with test results obtained using a one-quarter scale model. With the analysis, the influence of ties, distortional bracing, torsion boxes, and top chord bracing on the behaviour of torsionally open box girders is examined. Simplified design methods are also presented whereby the bracing forces and the stresses arising from the distortion of the section can be computed. Key words: bridges (box girder), bridges (steel), box beams, torsional distortion, bending distortion, bracing, construction safety.