Numerical Performance of Energy Dissipation Slotted Plate for Bridge Unseating Prevention

Abstract

Recently, the bridge unseating prevention devices are widely used in active seismic zones. These devices are stiffness dependant, velocity dependant and energy dissipation devices. The energy dissipation devices are designed to overcome the energy that transfers from bridge substructure to superstructure. However, the current devices are not controlled to function with different ground motion intensities and should be replaced after yielding. Therefore, this research introduced a slotted plate energy dissipation device with three parts, each part function in known deformation range. The slotted plate behavior has been evaluated numerically by finite element method. Displacement control and load control analysis has been done, and then the effect of steel grade is studied to predict the suitable steel properties for designing the plate. Moreover, the slotted plate behavior is applied in 3D bridge seismic analysis to assess the multi-level performance and the ability to overcome the seismic effect on the bridge in longitudinal direction. The results approved the capability of the plate to dissipate energy in multi-stage of deformation. The lower steel grade is suitable for low to moderate earthquake zone and the high grade can be used in severe ground motion areas. Furthermore, the bridge longitudinal behavior has enhanced with different steel grades of the slotted plate.