Case Study
Saco, MT: Bridge Deck Perfomance
Near the small town of Saco, Montana three bridges were constructed less than one mile apart along the same highway corridor,
Montana State Route 243. Because of their proximity to each other, each bridge experiences essentially identical demands from
weather, traffic, and winter maintenance. To assess bridge deck performance, each of the bridges were instrumented then each
bridge was fitted with a different type of reinforced concrete deck.
The instrumentation is primarily concentrated in a single driving lane of one 15 m span on each of the three bridges. Strain
gauges were placed in each bridge deck prior to casting the concrete. Three different strain gauge technologies were used in each
bridge: 35 Vishay foil strain gauges bonded to reinforcing steel, 7 Vishay embedment-type strain gauges suspended in concrete and
16 Geokon vibrating wire strain gauges suspended in concrete.
|
|
Phone: (780) 454 2505