Punching behavior of a novel steel-UHPFRC composite bridge deck slab

Abstract

<p>A novel steel-UHPFRC composite deck system, consisting of upper thin reinforced UHPFRC slab, hot rolled sections as longitudinal ribs, and steel strips as transversal reinforcement, is proposed originally in this paper. Considered as more economic and sustainable structure, the new composite deck is a promising alternative to traditional orthotropic steel deck (OSD) in long-span bridge. In this context, due to the relatively thin UHPFRC layer, the punching behavior of new composite deck becomes one of the dominant issues, which determines the spacing of steel trips. Hence, this paper presents the results of punching tests on 12 new composite deck slabs with various spacing of steel strips. All slabs failed in punching-flexure mode with a clearly delimited punching cone and significant flexural cracks on tensile surface. Moreover, the presence of steel strips can increase the punching shear resistance and flatten the inclination of critical shear cracks.</p>