Current specifications for highway bridge design provide empirical relationships for computing lateral impact loads generated during barge collisions; however, these relationships are based on limited experimental data. To better understand and characterize such loads, dynamic finite element analysis techniques were employed to simulate vessel impact conditions never before tested experimentally. Descriptions of the methods used to model a hopper barge, bridge piers, and soil–structure interaction are given. Impact simulation results, including time histories of impact loads and barge deformations, are presented and compared with data generated using current bridge design specifications.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
LarsenO. D.Ship Collision with Bridges: The Interaction Between Vessel Traffic and Bridge Structures. Structural Engineering Document 4. International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering, IASBE-AIPC-IVBH, Zurich, Switzerland, 1993.
2.
KnottM., and PruczZ.. Vessel Collision Design of Bridges. In Bridge Engineering Handbook (ChenW. F. and DuanL., eds.), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla., 1999.
3.
Guide Specification and Commentary for Vessel Collision Design of Highway Bridges. AASHTO, Washington, D.C., 1991.
4.
LRFD Bridge Design Specifications and Commentary. AASHTO, Washington, D.C., 1994.
5.
Meir-DornbergK. E.Ship Collisions, Safety Zones, and Loading Assumptions for Structures in Inland Waterways. VDI-Berichte No. 496, 1983, pp. 1–9.
ConsolazioG. R., CookR. A., LehrG. B., and BollmannH. T.. Barge Impact Testing of the St. George Island Causeway Bridge, Phase I: Feasibility Study. Structures Research Report No. 783. University of Florida Engineering and Industrial Experiment Station, Gainesville, 2002.
8.
Rules for Building and Classing Steel Vessels for Service on Rivers and Intracoastal Waterways. American Bureau of Shipping Technical Publications, Houston, Tex., 1997.
9.
FB-PIER User’s Manual. Florida Bridge Software Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, 2002.
