Abstract
Bridge piers on large rivers are often protected from scouring using launchable stone, such as a riprap sloping structure. While such scour countermeasures are effective for pier protection, they significantly alter flow conditions in the bridge opening by overtopping flow and flow contraction, deflecting the formation of the scour hole downstream and exposing the downstream riverbed to additional scour. This paper provides a comprehensive and relevant review of bridge scour estimation methods for piers with a riprap sloping structure installed as a scour countermeasure. Research on empirical methods for bridge scour estimation is reviewed and analyzed with formulae used for comparable structures—complex pier formulae and formulae for river training structures. A summary of relevant formulae applicable to piers with installed scour countermeasures is provided, as well as a discussion on the possible future research directions that could contribute to the field.
Highlights
The majority of bridges have been built to provide an effective connection between the banks over the waterways, impacting society both economically and politically, and at the same time interacting with the waterway flow regime [1]
Once the scour risk is determined in the life cycle of bridges over large rivers, piers are usually retrofitted with riprap sloping structures as scour protection measures
In the literature there are numerous empirical equations developed for different pier shapes and sizes, but the ones taking into account complex flow conditions in the bridge opening with installed riprap sloping structure as scour countermeasure are lacking
Summary
The majority of bridges have been built to provide an effective connection between the banks over the waterways, impacting society both economically and politically, and at the same time interacting with the waterway flow regime [1]. Economic losses resulting from traffic disruption following the bridge failure exceed its construction value [4], making bridges critical infrastructure assets [5]. According to the US bridge failure data, the majority of failed bridges are steel bridges (>60%), their portion in the National Bridge Inventory is significantly smaller than the concrete ones, at 30% compared with 65%, respectively [13]. The average age of the bridges at the time of the failure was 64 years, and
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call