Full-scale field testing of a precast concrete buried arch bridge with steel outriggers: Field loading test

Abstract

In this study, field loading tests were conducted to examine the structural response and behaviors of a new type of precast concrete buried arch bridge with steel outriggers (PCASO), consisting of multiple straight precast segments (panels), steel outriggers, and V-strips. Static loading was applied on a full-scale field specimen, approximately 18 m length and 3 m height, for three load cases using concrete weight blocks that quantified its weight one by one using a crane. Finite element (FE) analysis was also conducted following the loading tests on the full-scale field specimen. The loading test results revealed that the deformed shape of the buried arch specimen was similar to the conceptual structural responses of the PCASO system affected by load conditions such as backfill and loading position. The deformed shape for each load case obtained from both the field test results and calculations performed by FE analysis was also compared, and its structural behavior and response calculated using the FE analysis can be confirmed to be relatively similar to the results from the field loading test. Therefore, through this loading test on a full-scale field specimen, the new PCASO system was confirmed to have sufficient structural stability and safety and predictable structural behaviors.