Experimental Study of Seamless Bridge Transition System for U.S. Practice

Abstract

AbstractExpansion joints are one of the main causes for high maintenance costs in bridges. In this paper, a seamless bridge system is presented that provides for bridges with long service lives by eliminating the joints over the length of the bridge, the approach slab, and a segment of the adjoining roadway. Bridge movements in seamless systems are dissipated in a transition zone located at the bridge ends beyond the abutments. Thermal compression forces are transferred to the base soil, and thermal tensile forces are handled through opening and closing of microcracks in the transition zone. Crack width and spacing are important parameters in the design of seamless bridge systems. In the seamless system presented, the transition zone consists of a top slab and a secondary slab installed a few feet deep in the base soil. The two slabs are connected via small piles. At the end of the transition zone where it interfaces the roadway, which can be either jointed rigid or flexible pavement, there is a joint cal...