EGCE 406Bridge Design

Praveen Chompreda

Mahidol UniversityFirst Semester, 2007

I. Introduction &Historical Perspective

What is a bridge?Merriam-Webster DictionaryBridge = Structure carrying a pathway or roadway over a depression or obstacle

American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)Bridges = Any structure having an opening not less than 6100 mm (20ft) that forms part of a highway or that is located over or under a highway

Anything smaller is just a culvert

SOIL

HIGHWAY

culvert

Historical Perspective of Bridge ConstructionPrehistoricRoman Period (70 BC - 476 AD)Middle Ages (500 AD -1500 AD)Inca Civilization (Peru, 1438-1533)Renaissance Period (1400-1600)Industrial Revolution (1700-1900)Twentieth Century (1900-2000)Twenty First Century (2000-2100)

PrehistoricPrehistoric

Bridges were simply logs or bamboo lay over a streamCannot cross over a wide river

Roman PeriodRoman Period (70 BC - 476 AD)

Roman discovered natural cement. Pozzolana is a loosely coherent volcanic sand found in Pozzoli near Naples. When mixed with lime, hydraulic cement is formed.Builders of Roman Empire built mostly stone arch bridges. Wood was scarce and had to be used economically.8 stone arch bridges were built, 6 still remain in rometoday

Roman Empire

117-180 AD

Roman Period

Ponte de Tiberio (27 BC to 14 AD) Rimini, Italy

Middle Ages

Middle Ages (500 AD -1500 AD)The bridge building and cement technology was lost after the fall of Roman Empire. Not much activity for about 1,000 years.Bridges were used to control traffic and as means of defenseHeavy stone structure with narrow openingsThe bridge knowledge had to be re-learned about 1100-1500 AD

Middle Ages

Old London Bridge(1176-1206)London, UK

Middle Ages

Old London Bridge(1176-1206)London, UK

Middle Ages

Chapel Bridge (Kapellbrücke) (original 1333, partly rebuilt in 1993)Lucerne, Switzerland204 m long wooden bridge

Middle Ages

Pont Valentre (1308 to 1355)France

Inca CivilizationInca Civilization (Peru, 1438-1533)

Rope bridge was developed around 1400 AD. This is an early type of suspension bridge

RenaissanceRenaissance Period (1400-1600)

Many of the Roman knowledge were rediscovered, including bridge buildingTruss was first invented but not widely used until later period

Rialto Bridge, over the Grand Canal (1591) | Venice, Italy | 26.8 m span

Renaissance

Pont Neuf (1578-1607)Paris, France

Industrial RevolutionIndustrial Revolution (1700-1900)

Age of ReasonDevelopment of steam engines to replace manual laborIron was first used in bridges in 1750Perfect masonry arch was developed

Westmister Bridge (1750)London, UK

Industrial Revolution

Railway Bridge (1845-1851)

Goltzsch Valley, Germany

31 m span

Industrial Revolution

Wood truss bridge was the firstkind of truss structureSeveral types of trussed weredeveloped

Isar River BridgeMunich, Germany

Industrial Revolution

Lederer BridgeAmberg, Germany

Bridge over Neckar River Germany

Industrial Revolution

Types of Timber Truss

Industrial Revolution

Coalbrookdale Bridge (1785) UK 30.5 m span iron bridge

Iron was first used in bridges during this period in about 1750

Industrial Revolution

Steel started to replace wrought iron in the late 1880sSteel is stronger and more ductile, which allows engineers to build a bigger bridge

Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)Scotland

521m span

Industrial Revolution

Suspension bridge was invented just before the 20th century

John RoeblingBridge(completed 1866)Cincinnati,Ohio

322 m span

Industrial Revolution

Brooklyn Bridge (completed 1883)New York, USAalso designed by John Roebling

Industrial Revolution

London Tower Bridge (1894)London, UK

Twentieth Century

Twentieth Century (1900-2000)Iron was completely replaced by Steel Steel Truss bridge was widely used in the early periodPrestressed Concrete was developed by Fressinet in 1940sSuspension Bridge was popular for long-span bridgesCable-Stayed Bridge was first developed

Twentieth Century

Railroad Bridges (1906-1909) Landwasser Gorge, Switzerland55 m span

Twentieth Century

Sydney Harbor Bridge (1938)Sydney, Australiaparabolic arch 503m span

Twentieth Century

Golden Gate Bridge (1937)San Francisco, USA1280 m span

Twentieth Century

Columbia River Bridge USA 1950 ft span

Twentieth Century

Mackinac Bridge (1957)Michigan, USA

1158 m span

Twentieth Century

Kocher Viaduct (1972) Germany

Twentieth Century

Sunshine Skyway Bridge (1987)Tampa, Florida366 m span

Twentieth Century

Akashi Kaikyo Bridge (1998) Japan 1991m central span

Twenty First Century

Gateshead Millennium Bridge (2000)Gateshead, UK126m span

Twenty First Century

Millau Viaduct (2004)Millau, France341 m high (tallest in the world)342 m span

Twenty First Century

Millau Viaduct (2004)Millau, France