Abstract
In hybrid girder bridges, an efficient type of steel-concrete joint, the so called concrete filled steel cells (CFSCs), can be used to transfer forces between the steel and concrete girders. In the CFSCs, where shear connectors embedded in the concrete core, the bearing capacity of shear connectors is significantly affected by the side confinement effects of steel cells. Shrinkage of concrete may change the interfacial restraints from the steel cells. So far, the influence of concrete shrinkage on the behavior of shear connectors in CFSCs has not been deeply addressed. This paper presents an experimental study of the structural response of shear connectors using reactive powder concrete (RPC) encased in CFSCs. To determine the shrinkage effects of RPC, results from two series of experimental programs are discussed: the first series included testing of twelve plug-in type push-out specimens to assess the performance of perfobond strip (PBL) connectors. The second series consists of testing two plug-in type push-out specimens and eight CFSC type push-out specimens to evaluate the behavior of PBL and steel stud connectors. Results indicated that initial cracks due to shrinkage were observed at the steel cell/RPC interface, which was very detrimental to connectors’ stiffness and strengths. Comparing to connectors with exposed RPC, the average ultimate bond strength at the CFSC steel cell/RPC interface dropped by 15%. Results also indicated that failure of steel stud and transverse steel rebar was barely influenced by RPC shrinkage. Furthermore, a comparison between experimental and predicting results was conducted to assess the applicability of the existing analytical models in predicting the behavior of PBL embedded in RPC with shrinkage.
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