Abstract

This article discusses the non-linear analysis and design of highway composite bridges with profiled steel sheeting. A three-dimensional finite element model has been developed for the composite bridges, which accounted for the bridge geometries, material non-linearities of the bridge components, bridge boundary conditions, shear connection, interactions among bridge components and bridge bracing systems. The simply supported composite bridge has a span of 48 m, a width of 13 m and a depth of 2.3 m. The bridge components were designed following the European code for steel–concrete composite bridges. The live load acting on the bridge was load model 1, which represents the static and dynamic effects of vertical loading due to normal road traffic as specified in the European code. The finite element model of the composite bridge was developed depending on additional finite element models, developed by the author, and validated against tests reported in the literature on full-scale composite bridges and composite bridge components. The tests had different geometries, different boundary conditions, different loading conditions and different failure modes. Failure loads, load–mid-span deflection relationships, load–end slip relationships, failure modes, stress contours of the composite bridge as well as of the modelled tests were predicted from the finite element analysis and compared well against test results. The comparison with test results has shown that the finite element models can be effectively used to provide more accurate analyses and better understanding for the behaviour and design of composite bridges with profiled steel sheeting. A parametric study was conducted on the composite bridge highlighting the effects of the change in structural steel strength and concrete strength on the behaviour and design of the composite bridge. This study has shown that the design rules specified in the European code are accurate and conservative for the design of highway steel–concrete composite bridges.

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