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-13-0043 | |
Project Name: | Development of Alternate Load Paths Around Blast or Cut Damaged/Destroyed Steel Truss Members | |
Project Status: | Active | |
Start Date: | August 1, 2014 | |
End Date: | July 31, 2019 | |
Contact Information | ||
Last Name: | Munley | |
First Name: | Eric P | |
Telephone: | 202-493-3046 | |
E-mail: | eric.munley@dot.gov | |
Office: | Office of Infrastructure Research and Development | |
Team: | Hazard Mitigation Team [HRDI-50] | |
Project detail | ||
Roadmap/Focus area(s): | Infrastructure Research and Technology Strategic Plan and Roadmap | |
Project Description: | This is a task order in the general research indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ): technical support services for the Hazard Mitigation team. Enabling a steel truss structure to use alternate load paths during an attack, as with many seismic design or retrofit details, is intended to prevent total or, at least, immediate collapse. Although the physical functions are different, the objectives of both seismic and counterterror designs are to limit the damage and to allow rapid repair, if possible, rather than total replacement. The focus of this Task Order will be methods to provide or improve the alternate load path (ALP) function in surviving members, specifically on steel truss bridges (which often lack redundancy). Providing an alternate load path is one of four countermeasure types used to meet this general objective. The others are inertial resistance, strain energy absorption, and momentum transfer. For any ALP being developed in this task order, the other types of countermeasure may be present as secondary effects. | |
Goals: |
(1) Assessment of steel truss bridge existing members ability to provide full or partial Redundancy/Alternate Load Paths (ALPs) to prevent progressive collapse from blast loads or member cutting.
(2) Assessment of currently used seismic retrofit designs ability to provide ALPs to prevent progressive collapse of Steel Truss bridges from blast loads or member cutting.
(3) Initiate development of bridge retrofit components to provide full or partial redundancy/alternate load paths to prevent progressive collapse of steel truss bridges caused by local blast failure or by cutting of individual members.
|
|
Product Type: | Research report | |
Test Methodology: | This project will first conduct an assessment of existing alternate load paths (ALPs) under dynamic loads. It will assess the adaptability of seismic retrofits on bridges of this type. It will develop preliminary retrofit component performance specifications, and it will recommend candidate steel truss bridge retrofit methods to provide ALPs, and design a laboratory and field test program to develop and implement these recommendations. | |
Expected Benefits: | American bridges will be able to survive terrorist attacks. | |
Deliverables: | Name: Development of Alternate Load Paths Around Blast or Cut Damaged/Destroyed Steel Truss Members Product Type(s): Research report Description: Bridge retrofit components to provide full or partial redundancy/alternate load paths to prevent progressive collapse of steel truss bridges caused by local blast failure or by cutting of individual members. | |
FHWA Topics: | Research/Technologies--Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center (TFHRC) | |
TRT Terms: | Mitigation Counterterrorism Bridges Research Infrastructure Truss Bridges Steel Bridges |
|
FHWA Disciplines: | Structures |
|
Subject Areas: | Bridges and other structures |
|