00820965

Component

https://doi.org/10.3141/1770-02

http://scholar.google.com...eder&publication_year=2001

A high-performance concrete (HPC) mixture has been used on several bridge construction projects in the upstate region of South Carolina. The majority of these bridge decks, although not all, have experienced problems with early-age cracking both before being opened to traffic and immediately thereafter. The cracking exhibited in these bridge decks presents a significant obstacle to the widespread adoption of HPC materials for bridges in South Carolina. In an effort to determine likely causes of the cracking experienced in these concrete bridge decks, sight inspections were made of nine bridges in the Greenville-Spartanburg, South Carolina, area, and a thorough review of construction documentation from three of these sites was carried out. In addition, a review of the South Carolina Department of Transportation concrete specifications was conducted. It was concluded that observed cracking has two likely causes. Early-age shrinkage cracking resulted from a rich concrete mixture combined with poor curing practices. Load-induced cracking, appearing shortly after the spans were open to traffic, may result from the placement of relatively stiff decks on more flexible bridge superstructures. Improved on-site quality control and quality assurance are recommended for all aspects of mixing, placing, and curing when HPC is used. It is also recommended that a more appropriate HPC mix design be developed for use in bridge decks. Such a concrete mix would have enhanced durability characteristics and should not be a high-strength mix. Adoption of the eight Federal Highway Administration performance criteria for HPC is recommended.

This paper appears in Transportation Research Record No. 1770, Design of Structures 2001.

English

p. 12-19

2001

Transportation Research Record

0309072328

Figures (1) ; Photos (3) ; References (24) ; Tables (3)

Bridge decks; Concrete curing; Cracking; Durability; High performance concrete; Inspection; Mix design; Quality assurance; Quality control; Recommendations; Shrinkage; Specifications; Stiffness; Traffic loads

South Carolina

Bridges and other structures; Design; Freight Transportation; Highways; Research; I24: Design of Bridges and Retaining Walls

TRIS, TRB, ATRI

Dec 5 2001 12:00AM

• BRIDGE SAFETY MONITORING USING COUPLED CURRENT DEVICE IMAGES
• COMPARATIVE STUDY OF AASHTO LOAD AND RESISTANCE FACTOR DESIGN DISTRIBUTION FACTORS FOR SLAB-GIRDER BRIDGES
• CONCRETE BRIDGE DECKS REINFORCED WITH FIBER-REINFORCED POLYMER BARS (WITH DISCUSSION AND CLOSURE)
• DEBRIS FLOW SIMULATION FOR HIGHWAY CROSS CULVERTS
• DESIGN OF PROFILE WALL THERMOPLASTIC PIPE FOR LOCAL BUCKLING (WITH DISCUSSION AND CLOSURE)
• DESIGN OF ROUTE 895 BRIDGE OVER JAMES RIVER IN VIRGINIA
• DIAGNOSTIC AND IN-SERVICE TESTING OF TRANSIT RAILWAY BRIDGE
• DYNAMIC LOADING OF BRIDGES
• EFFECT OF BEARING STIFFNESS AND SKEW ANGLE ON PERFORMANCE OF PRECAST CONCRETE BRIDGE
• EFFECTIVE USE OF PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT TO ACHIEVE AESTHETIC QUALITY IN BRIDGE DESIGN
• ESCAPE ADITS FOR TUNNEL SAFETY
• EXPERIMENTAL AND NUMERICAL EVALUATION OF BRACED-CHAIN EYEBAR BRIDGE
• EXPERIMENTAL CHARACTERIZATION OF METALLIC DAMPERS FOR SEISMIC RETROFIT OF HIGHWAY BRIDGES
• FATIGUE ASSESSMENT OF TRAFFIC SIGNAL MAST ARMS BASED ON FIELD TEST DATA UNDER NATURAL WIND GUSTS
• FIELD STUDIES OF STRENGTHENED TIMBER RAILROAD BRIDGE
• HEALTH MONITORING OF IRONTON-RUSSELL BRIDGE FOR RATING PURPOSES
• LONG-TERM DURABILITY OF STRUCTURAL COMPOSITE LUMBER IN BRIDGE APPLICATIONS
• PERFORMANCE IN LIEU OF PRESCRIPTION IN BRIDGE DESIGN: CHANGI AIRPORT MEZZANINE BRIDGE, SINGAPORE
• PERFORMANCE OF FIVE-SPAN STEEL BRIDGE WITH FIBER-REINFORCED POLYMER COMPOSITE DECK PANELS
• PERFORMANCE OF GLASS FIBER-REINFORCED POLYMER DECK ON STEEL GIRDER BRIDGE
• PUBLIC PARTICIPATION AND BRIDGE TYPE SELECTION
• REPAIR AND STRENGTHENING OF CONCRETE STRUCTURES THROUGH APPLICATION OF CORRECTIVE POSTTENSIONING FORCES WITH SHAPE MEMORY ALLOYS
• RETROFITTING TO CORRECT UPLIFT OF CURVED GIRDER BRIDGE THROUGH FIELD TESTING AND ANALYSIS
• SOIL PRESSURE MEASURED AT VARIOUS FILL HEIGHTS ABOVE DEEPLY BURIED THERMOPLASTIC PIPE
• SUPERSTRUCTURE FLEXIBILITY AND DISINTEGRATION OF REINFORCED CONCRETE DECK SLABS: AN LRFD PERSPECTIVE
• TIME-DEPENDENT DEFLECTION OF THERMOPLASTIC PIPES UNDER DEEP BURIAL
• ULTRASONIC INSPECTION OF GLUED LAMINATED TIMBER FABRICATED WITH DEFECTS
• UPDATE ON ANALYTICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH ON BRIDGE RESTRAINERS
• VIRTUAL REALITY IMAGES TO AID PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT IN APPEARANCE OF ROADS AND BRIDGES