Typically it is not possible to fabricate, handle, ship or erect the entire length of a girder in one piece. In these cases, provisions must be made to splice multiple pieces of the girder together in the field to provide the required length. These splices must be capable of transmitting the shear and moment in the girder at the point of the splice. This module focuses on the factors which influence and the principles of the design of bolted field splices. Factors that influence field splice design and layout are presented, including span layout, curvature, and girder properties. General design provisions are also addressed in this module, including flexural resistance provided by a bolted field splice at the Strength and Service limit states, as well as detailing considerations. Lastly, a thorough design example of a bolted field splice for a steel I-girder is provided, illustrating calculations for flange and web stress, splice plate design, and bolt design. Strength, Service, and Fatigue limit states are considered, and design checks are provide for tension, compression, and shear resistance of splice plates, fracture and bearing resistance of splice plates, and strength and slip resistances of the bolted connections.
Horizontally curved steel bridges present many unique challenges. Despite their challenges, curved girder bridges have become widespread and are commo...
Tub girders, as closed-section structures, provide a more efficient cross section for resisting torsion than I-girders, which is especially important ...
Links with this icon indicate that you are leaving a Bureau of Transportation
Statistics (BTS)/National Transportation Library (NTL)
Web-based service.
Thank you for visiting.
You are about to access a non-government link outside of
the U.S. Department of Transportation's National
Transportation Library.
Please note: While links to Web sites outside of DOT are
offered for your convenience, when you exit DOT Web sites,
Federal privacy policy and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation
Act (accessibility requirements) no longer apply. In
addition, DOT does not attest to the accuracy, relevance,
timeliness or completeness of information provided by linked
sites. Linking to a Web site does not constitute an
endorsement by DOT of the sponsors of the site or the
products presented on the site. For more information, please
view DOT's Web site linking policy.
To get back to the page you were previously viewing, click
your Cancel button.
United States Department of Transportation
[PDF-2.80 MB]
