U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-4000
Federal Highway Administration Research and Technology
Coordinating, Developing, and Delivering Highway Transportation Innovations
| Project Information | ||
| Project ID: | FHWA-PROJ-05-0004 | |
| Project Name: | Full Scale Bridge Cable Tests | |
| Project Status: | Active | |
| Start Date: | October 1, 2005 | |
| End Date: | September 30, 2014 | |
| Contact Information | ||
| Last Name: | Bosch | |
| First Name: | Harold R | |
| Telephone: | 202-493-3031 | |
| E-mail: | harold.bosch@dot.gov | |
| Office: | Office of Infrastructure Research and Development | |
| Team: | Hazard Mitigation Team [HRDI-50] | |
| Program: | Innovative Bridge Research and Deployment | |
| Laboratory: | Aerodynamics Laboratory | |
| Project detail | ||
| Roadmap/Focus area(s): | Infrastructure Research and Technology Strategic Plan and Roadmap | |
| Project Description: | Several new cable-stayed structures currently under construction with new mitigation features or different deployment details will be selected as candidate test sites. Forced vibration tests will be performed on a representative sample of stay cables to establish their dynamic properties at various stages of construction. | |
| Background Information: | Rain- or wind-induced vibration of stay cables has become a significant issue in the United States, as well as around the world. There have been a number of significant observed events in this country accompanied by structural damage. A major pooled fund project has been underway to study the problem and develop guidelines to mitigate the problem. During this study, it has become apparent that more detailed information is needed regarding actual cable dynamic properties and the effectiveness of various mitigation details. | |
| Product Type: | Research report | |
| Test Methodology: | The tests involve installing accelerometers on the stays and exciting them one at a time. The decaying vibrations are recorded using portable instrumentation and multiple test runs will be made to ensure consistency. A series of tests will run on the cables prior to and following installation of each feature as the construction schedule and owners will allow. Data will be evaluated to determine cable frequencies and mode shapes as well as to establish inherent damping in the cables and in the cable system. | |
| Other Information: | Bridge access and logistical support will be provided by Maine Department of Transportation, Missouri Department of Transportation, and others as needed. | |
| Expected Benefits: | The research will help to establish cable properties crucial to aerodynamic stability. The information obtained will be added to an ongoing effort to catalog these properties and will support pooled fund study SPR-3(078). | |
| Deliverables: | Name: Research report. Product Type(s): Research report Description: The deliverable will consist of one or several research reports, as appropriate, to document testing and structural performance at each bridge site. For bridges where special mitigation features are deployed, the effectiveness of the feature or its impact on structural performance will be documented. | |
| FHWA Topics: | Roads and Bridges--Design | |
| TRT Terms: | Aerodynamic Stability Long Span Bridges Testing Bridge Cables Infrastructure Research Bridges |
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| FHWA Disciplines: | Design Environment Structures |
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| Subject Areas: | Bridges and other structures Design Environment |
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