ANALYSIS AND DESIGN OF FIBER-REINFORCED PLASTIC COMPOSITE DECK-AND-STRINGER BRIDGES

A comprehensive study on analysis and design of fiber reinforced plast ic (FRP) composite deck-and-stringer bridges is presented. The FRP dec ks considered consist of contiguous thin-walled box sections and are f abricated by bonding side-by-side pultruded thin-walled box beams, whi ch are placed transversely over FRP composite stringers. In this study , we review the modeling and experimental verification of FRP structur al beams, including micro/macro-mechanics predictions of ply and lamin ate properties, beam bending response, shear-lag effect, and local and global buckling behaviors. A simplified design analysis procedure for cellular FRP bridge decks is developed based on a first-order shear d eformation macro-flexibility (SDMF) orthotropic plate solution. The pr esent approach can allow the designers to analyze, design and optimize material architectures and shapes of FRP beams, as well as various br idge deck configurations, before their implementation in the field. Ex perimental studies of cellular FRP bridge decks are conducted to obtai n stiffness coefficients, and an example of a cellular FRP deck on opt imized winged-box]FRP stringers under actual track-loading is presente d to illustrate the analytical method. The experimental-analytical app roach presented in this study is used to propose simplified engineerin g design equations for new and replacement highway FRP deck-and-string er bridges. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.