Seismic pounding effect in bridges with high piers

Abstract

In this paper, In order to study the seismic pounding of high-pier bridges in the mountainous areas of Chinese Western zone, a fiber element model of a bridge was established, and the GAP cells were intercalated in expansion joints between main bridge and approach bridge in the high-pier bridges, followed by a detailed analysis of its natural vibration characteristics. Furthermore, by analysis and comparison, the seismic pounding response and its effects on the bridge were discussed under different earthquake motion. The analysis results indicate that the seismic pounding effect is related with the natural period of the bridge's each part and inputted earthquake motion's characteristic, and could be beneficial to one part of the bridge, to some extent.