Bridge Service Life Design

Details

• Creators:
  Bales, Elizabeth Rose ; Chitrapu, Venkatasaikrishna ; Flint, Madeleine M.
• Corporate Creators:
  Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Charles E. Via, Jr. Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Corporate Contributors:
  Virginia. Dept. of Transportation ; Virginia Transportation Research Council ; United States. Federal Highway Administration
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Admixtures
  • Bridge decks
  • Design standards
  • Life cycle costing
  • Reinforced concrete bridges
  • Service life
  • Bridges
  • service life design
  • bridge deck
  • chloride diffusion
  More +
• Publication/ Report Number:
  FHWA/VTRC 18-R1
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Virginia
• Corporate Publisher:
  Virginia Transportation Research Council
• Abstract:
  High costs and traffic disruption associated with the deterioration of reinforced concrete bridge decks because of corrosion have sparked renewed interest in service life design. Reinforced concrete bridge decks are exposed to chlorides from deicing salts; when the chlorides reach the steel reinforcement, they initiate corrosion. This study supports the adoption of the methodology described in fib Bulletin 34, Model Code for Service Life Design, for reinforced concrete bridge decks in Virginia. Concrete mixture properties and environmental exposure conditions were characterized. Values particular to regions within Virginia and suggested default values were identified and organized in a database to support the development of service life design guidelines. The predicted service life for eight bridge decks using low-cracking concrete and corrosion-resistant reinforcement (VDOT Reinforcement Class I, MMFX, ASTM 1035) was evaluated. The service life model was also implemented in a life-cycle cost analysis for a case study bridge, which found superior reliability of corrosion-resistant reinforcement from a life-cycle perspective.
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  107645
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/37141/dot_37141_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 839.28 KB]
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:695cb71ac81fe45d1484efdee7be0dc35eecbebb1dbf0f11b4e93971d0dde988