WET CONCRETE LOADING OF PROFILED TROUGH GIRDERS

Profiled trough girders act as the permanent formwork for reinforced c oncrete beams, and form a member known as a composite profiled beam. D uring the construction phase, the pouring of wet concrete may influenc e the strength and stiffness of the profiled girder. The method of pro filed composite construction is thus described herein and the influenc e of the wet concrete loading of profiled trough girders is studied. A series of their profiled trough girders were tested under wet concret e loads, and their deformations were monitored. A folded plate finite element method is then developed to model the in-plane and out-of-plan e deformations that the trough wall is subjected to during this wet co ncrete loading.