—* re Volume1o0 Numbera Spring 2006USO se-a ae era. Concrete evidence Fatigue cracks are a major problem for orthotropic steel bridge decks, and cracks in the steel deck plate are of particular concern given their effect on traffic safety. This article reports on a new overlay ‘system that promises to address some of these problems, Peter Buitelaar, Contec ApS, Denmark, René Braam, Delft University of Technology Concrete Structures Group, The Netherlands and Niek Kaptijn, Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, The Netherlands wo bridge deck overlay replacement | projects that were under way in the Netherlands during the summer of 2005 represented the culmination of major research efforts into solving problems with fatigue damage to steel deck bridges. Projects to rehabilitate the Hagenstein Bridge on the 27 near Vianen and the Moerdijk Bridge on the Au6 near Breda, saw the first large-scale application of a new concrete overtay system that is intended to solve problems with fatigue on such structutes. Research and development A major research project has been carried out over the last six years, including a pilot project in 2003, to try to develop a new high- performance concrete (HPC) wearing course for orthotropic steel bridges which can also extend the service life of the total construc- tion by solving fatigue problems in specific deck details. The resulting solution is very promising, since it turns the deck plate into a much more rigid construction with a higher ‘plate factor’ due to the monolithic compos- ite interaction between the reinforced high- performance concrete (RHPC) overlay and the steel deck plate. The overlay, with a min- imum thickness of somm, has been found to extend the service life of the orthotropic bridge deck by a matter of decades without additional maintenance. Developments in concrete over the past few decades have resulted in HPC of 100-155MPa and even ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPO), which can be higher than 4ooMPa. ‘Much higher strengths can be achieved by a further densification of the cement matrix com- bined with an additional pressure and heat treatment during setting and hardening. But HPC and UHPC are also very brittle, so itis nec- essary to use a large amount of aggregate in the matrix and, if possible, reinforcement with fibres and reinforcement bar. This composite or hybrid material is known as ‘compact rein- forced composite’ (CRO and the CRC principle makes it possible to accurately predict the behaviour of structures of all sizes under differ- ent loadings, especially when scaling up from small models. Heavily reinforced ultra-high- performance concrete seems to have extremely good fatigue resistance even under continuous high loads. Figure 1: The overlayis placed under cover to provide protection from adverse weather conditions, Overlay properties One of the first large applications of rein- forced high-performance concrete (RHPO, overlay was as a white topping on damaged Pavements and industrial floors and in cargo ships. The properties of the overlay make it possible to place it as an ‘independent’ top- ping, or wearing course, on a cracked and/or polluted sub-base, or even on an under dimensioned sub-base made from different materials, such as asphalt concrete, concrete, wood, ceramics or steel. One or more layers of welded mesh reinforcement are included and the concrete mixture contains both steel fibres and acrylic fibres based on a special composite of pre-blended materials. The standard setting time of the mixture is more or less equal to that of a traditional concrete mixture and, similarly, depends on temperature and relative humidity, although accelerators can shorten the setting time. After curing for approximately 24 hours at 20°C, the overlay is ready for use. Due to the large amount of welded mesh reinforcement and steel fibres, the hardened overlay is able to withstand a certain amount of restrained deformations from the base without the occurrence of large surface cracks. RHPC overlay is a combination of an HPC strength class C1to (based on special pre- blended materials and reinforced with both steel fibres and acrylic fibres) and welded mesh reinforcement. The mesh reinforce- ment is placed on an 8mm diameter bar used as a spacer. Therefore, the total amount of reinforcement is approximately 24ke/m? of traditional reinforcement and 5ke/m2 of steel fibres. The total thickness of the RHPC overlay is, in this case, somm and the con- crete cover on the reinforcement is therefore only 18mm. Ifthe thickness of the layer were to be increased, the reinforcement could be adjusted as necessary. To replace the exist- ing wearing course with an RHPC overlay, the bonding between the steel deck plate (thick- ness 10-12mm) and the overlay is of crucial importance to secure total deck rigidity and @ uniform monolithic behaviour under all cir cumstances, The best bonding method was the use of a two-component, epoxy-based adhesive with broadcast bauxite aggregate, After hardening of the epoxy, the overlay is cast and the surface shot-blasted. No addi- tional wearing course is applied. The Moerdijk Bridge In addition to research on relatively small samples, it was also necessary to perform tests on full-scale structural elements under different loading conditions. Several associ- ated projects at different institutes, such as the civil engineering division of the Ministry ‘of Transport, Contec, Delft University of Technology and TNO Building & Construction Concrete Engineering International Spring 2006 * 45Loos & INFRASTRUCTU 6 Replacement of the mastic asphalt surfacing with RHPC reduces the stresses in the deck plate by approximately 80% and the stresses in the longitudinal weld between deck plate and trough web by approximately 60%. 9 Figure 2: The properties of the overlay make it possible to place it as an ‘independent’ topping, or wearing course. Research, were carried out to investigate and document the material's properties and behaviour and this research is still ongoing. Tests proved that the intended application of RHPC overlay was a very promising solu- tion for rehabilitation of orthotropic steel bridge decks: both durability and strength were found to be adequate. In the summer of 2005, the Dutch ministry started the reha- bilitation of two major bridges. The Moercik Bridge on the A16 near Breda between Rotterdam and Antwerp is believed to have the most intense traffic spectrum in westem Europe with more than 100,000 vehicles crossing per day and some 2.5 million heavy goods vehicles per lane each year. A total area of 16,000m? was rehabilitated from May to November 2005, and the same area will be undergoing rehabilitation during the summer of 2006. Engineering and super- vision is being carried out by the civil engi- neering division of the Dutch ministry and the main contractor is TB! Beton-en Waterbouw Haverkort. Subcontractors Bruil- Ede and Cobeton are responsible for placing the heavily reinforced, high-performance concrete, which is being supplied by Contec. ‘The bridge is being rehabilitated because it is suffering from cracks which have been caused by fatigue in the deck plate and in the weld between the deck plate and the through-wall, The deck plate on this bridge is uneven, resulting in a thickness of overlay between 47 and 100mm, making it neces- sary to place the reinforcement on supports. Some extra reinforcement is also necessary in the locations where the deck is thickest Traffic is still using the other lanes while the rehabilitation takes place. The Hagenstein Bridge Time restrictions are the issue for the other contract ~ the Hagenstein Bridge on the Azz near Vianen, located on the motorway between Breda and Almere. A total area of 4200m? was rehabilitated during July 2005, in just 14 days. The second phase, a similar total area, will be rehabilitated during July 2006. Client, engineering and supervision are the same on this project as on the Hagenstein Bridge, but the contractor was Strukton Betonbouw. Again, the high-per: formance concrete was supplied by Contec. The use of RHPC as bridge deck surfacing Figures 3 and 4: Deck deformations shown in the finite-element model. 46 * Concrete Engineering International Spring 2006 Figure 5: The completed overlay is a good altemative to conventional asphalt surfacing. Replacement of the mastic asphalt surfacing with RHPC reduces the stresses in the deck plate by approximately 80% and the stresses in the longitudinal weld between deck plate and trough web by approximately 60%. Therefore, it is a very effective solution for fatigue problems, such as those found in bridge deck structures. It was not possible for the contractors working on the bridge to achieve the required maximum flatness of 3mm over 3m using a vibrating screed. The skid resistance was also less than on the pilot project. The complexity of the job (namely the bridge in use with significant movements) in combina~ tion with the relatively new method of reha- bilitation, made placing more difficult than expected. A very thin wearing course on top of the RHPC may be necessary to reach the flatness and skid resistance of the surface. Conclusion More tests undertaken at the Delft University of Technology, with regard to the placeability, shrinkage and use of intemal curing com- pounds, are showing promising results for placing with slipform pavers on future reha- bilitation projects. In 2005, RHPC was placed on the Voorst viaduct, located on the Aa/E30 motorway in the Netherlands, to strengthen the existing structure and to upgrade the capacity from a dual carriageway to a three lane motorway with an additional traffic lane in each direction as a rush-hour lane. The RHPC was placed using a slipform paver for the first time on an actual job. ll @ Acknowledgement: ‘This article has been adapted from an article that was first published in Bridae Design & Engineering magazine, issue no. 40, third quarter 2005 and is published with peiission. See wwnbridgeweb.com