VOL. 5, NO. 11, NOVEMBER 2010 ISSN 1819-6608
ARPN Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences
© 2006-2010 Asian Research Publishing Network (ARPN). All rights reserved.
www.arpnjournals.com
STRENGTHENING OF JIAMUSI PRE-STRESSED CONCRETE HIGHWAY
BRIDGE BY USING EXTERNAL POST-TENSIONING TECHNOLOGY
IN CHINA
Ali Fadhil Naser and Wang Zonglin
School of Transportation Science and Engineering, Bridge and Tunnel Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, China
E-Mail: ali_hu73@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
External post-tensioning is defined as a system in which the pre-stressing tendons or bars are located outside the
concrete section. The pre-stressing force is transferred to the member section through the end anchorages, deviators or
saddles. The objectives of this study are to strengthen Jiamusi pre-stressed concrete highway bridge by using external post-
tensioning tendons, to determine the internal forces, and to design the external post-tensioning system. Two software are
used in the analysis of the T-shaped cantilever structure and anchor beam. The first is Dr. Bridge software Ver. 3.1, and the
second is Ansys software Ver. 10. The results of analysis before and after laying the leveling layer of the bridge deck
pavement show that the section of T-shaped cantilever structure can satisfy the demand of vehicle-20 grade and vehicle-50
grade. The compressive stress of the upper edge of pier top box section is small, it is only 1.91Mpa. Therefore, there is
need to strengthen the top of the bridge deck. External post-tensioning tendons are used to strengthen the bridge deck. The
selection of external post-tensioning tendons depends on the ASTMA416-90A specification. The external tendons consist
of high strength, low relaxation strands, and the standard tensile strength is 1860MPa. The design and construction of
external post-tensioning system includes the design and construction of anchor beam which includes the design of re-bars
and the design of damper devices, and the layout of external post-tensioning tendons along the bridge deck.
Keywords: concrete bridges, strengthening, external tendons, shear stress, analysis, design, Jiamusi, China.
INTRODUCTION
The strengthening of concrete structure involves
upgrading of the strength and stiffness of a structure
members. The strengthening of the bridge structural
members can be attempted by replacing poor quality or
defective materials by better quality materials, attaching
additional load-bearing materials, and re-distribution of
the loading actions through imposed deformation on the
structure system. The selection of an appropriate method
for the strengthening and repair of the bridge structural
members depends on a number of factors. The factors
include the type and age of structure, the importance of
structure, the magnitude of the strength required which
that is need to increase, the type and degree of damage,
available materials, cost and feasibility, and aesthetics [1,
2].
The pre-stressing systems can be defined as the
preloading of a structure before the application of the
service loads, and consist of two types of pre-stressing.
The first type is known as pre-tensioning pres-stressing
and the second type is known post-tensioning pre-
stressing. Post-tensioning is a method of strengthening of
concrete structure with high strength steel strand or bars
referred to as tendons [3].
External post-tensioning is defined as a system in
which the pre-stressing tendons or bars are located outside
the concrete section. The pre-stressing force is transferred
to the member section through end anchorages, deviators
or saddles. The use of external post-tensioning became
popular in the last two decades, after the improvement for
corrosion protection of external tendons by methods such
as epoxy and grease coating [4, 5, 6].
External post-tensioning system consists of high
strength tendons, ducts, and grout pipes. Tendons are
combined from steel bars or strand. Anchorage is the point
where the pre-stressing force is applied and consists of
anchor head or wedge plate, wedge, bearing plate, duct
transition, and grout tube connections. Duct is a sheath for
pos-tensioning tendons, grout pipes are attached to the
duct to place concrete for internal tendons [7].
The main aim of the bridge structure
strengthening by using additional external pre-stressing
tendons is to fulfill all necessary serviceability criteria and
not to extend its ultimate limit state. The use of external
post-tensioning for the strengthening of existing bridges
has been used in many countries since the 1950s and has
been found to provide an efficient and economic solution
for a wide range of bridge types and conditions. [8, 9].
Strengthening by using external post-tensioning
is simply the application of an axial load combined with
bending moment to improve the flexural and shear
capacity of the bridge structural members [10].
The objectives of this study are to explain the
strengthening of Jiamusi pre-stressed concrete highway
bridge by using external post-tensioning tendons, to
determine internal forces, and to design the external post-
tensioning system. In this study, two software are used in
the analysis of T-shaped structure and anchor beam. The
first is Dr. Bridge software Ver. 3.1 and the second is
Ansys Ver. 10.
DESCRIPTION OF THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE
Jiamusi pre-stressed concrete highway bridge is
located across the Songhua river in the Jiamusi city within
Heilongjiang province in the east north of China. The total
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