Lateral Load Distribution for Steel Beams Supporting an FRP Panel

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Lateral Load Distribution for Steel Beams Supporting an FRP Panel

Author: Poole, Harrison Walker | Size: 3.62 MB | Format: PDF | Quality: Original preprint | Publisher: Kansas State University's Center for Transportation Research | Year: 2012 | pages: 162

Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) is a relatively new material used in the field of civil engineering. FRP is composed of fibers, usually carbon or glass, bonded together using a polymer adhesive and formed into the desired structural shape. Recently, FRP deck panels have been viewed as an attractive alternative to concrete decks when replacing deteriorated bridges. The main advantages of an FRP deck are its weight (roughly 75% lighter than concrete), its high strength-to-weight ratio, and its resistance to deterioration. In bridge design, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) provides load distributions to be used when determining how much load a longitudinal beam supporting a bridge deck should be designed to hold. Depending on the deck material along with other variables, a different design distribution will be used. Since FRP is a relatively new material used for bridge design, there are no provisions in the AASHTO code that provides a load distribution when designing beams supporting an FRP deck. FRP deck panels, measuring 6 ft x 8.5 ft, were loaded and analyzed at Kansas State University (KSU) over the past 4 years. The research conducted provides insight towards a conservative load distribution to assist engineers in future bridge designs with FRP decks. Two FRP panels were tested using two different support configurations. The continuous panel test was completed throughout the year of 2007 while the simple span and cantilever tests were completed November, 2010 through January, 2011. Load increments of 5 kips from 0 to 20 kips were analyzed in this report. From strain results, load ratios for beams were developed and a distribution ratio for each tests setup was determined. Additional testing was completed on the simple span in order to determine the moment curve for a beam with different loading scenarios. These moment curves provided the researchers with insight that would determine an effective load distribution length of the panel bearing on the supporting beam.

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