Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Precast Prestressed
♦
Segmental Bridges
T heengineering
seventies will be recorded by
historians as the de-
Construction in this manner may
also have a serious impact upon envi-
cade in which prestressed concrete ronment and ecology. Prestressed
segmental bridge construction came of segmental construction has extended
age in North America. Segmental box the practical span of concrete bridges
girder bridges have attracted the at- to approximately 800 ft (244 m).
tention and captured the imagination Where segmental construction is used
of bridge engineers and designers in conjunction with the cable-stay
across the continent. bridge concept, the span range can be
Because of practical limitations of extended to 1300 ft (400 m) and
handling and shipping, the precast perhaps longer.'
prestressed I-girder type of bridge Because construction of the super-
construction is limited to an approxi- structure is executed from above, i.e.,
mate range of 120 to 150-ft (37 to 46 at deck level, the use of extensive
m) spans. Beyond this range of span, falsework is avoided. Thus, there is no
post-tensioned cast-in-place box gir- effect upon navigation clearance from
ders on falsework are more attractive. falsework during construction and the
However, in certain instances the ex- cost of extensive formwork is elimi-
tensive use of falsework can prove to nated. Segmental viaduct type bridges
be an economic disadvantage. Where provide a method whereby the impact
deep ravines or navigable waterways of highway construction through en-
must be crossed, extensive formwork vironmentally sensitive areas can be
may be impractical. minimized.
56
Utilization of an elevated viaduct evolution of prestressed concrete
type structure requires only a rela- bridges to this point in the state-of-
tively narrow path along the align- the-art and to present a few basic de-
ment to provide access for pier con- finitions.
struction. Once the piers have been Precasting of elements or members
constructed, all construction activity is of a structure implies that the concrete
from above. Thus, the impact on the is cast in forms at some location other
environment is minimized. Also, be- than the final position of the member.
cause the structure is elevated, as op- The member may be cast at a perma-
posed to an at-grade highway, there is nent precasting plant at some location
no interference with wild life migra- other than the construction site; then
tory habits. transported by truck, rail, or barge to
Prestressed concrete segmental the site; and eventually erected to its
bridges have proven to be esthetically final position. The member may also
appealing and, because various con- be cast at some location in close
struction methods can be used, the proximity to the construction site
structures are cost effective and en- eliminating the transportation from
vironmentally adaptable. precasting plant to construction site.
In either situation the member is cast
at a location other than its final posi-
Evolution of tion in the structure.
Segmental Bridges Segmental construction has been
defined as "... a method of construc-
Before discussing the various facets tion ... in which primary load carry-
and variants of precast segmental box ing members are composed of indi-
girder bridges, it may enhance the vidual segments post-tensioned to-
understanding of this type of con- gether. "2
struction to briefly trace the historical As early as 1948, Eugene Freyssi-
net, the great French prestressing was made using a series of machine-
pioneer, used prestressed concrete for made blocks (strung like beads on a
the construction of five bridges over string) which were prestressed to-
the Marne River near Paris, with gether to form a beam.
spans of 240 ft (73 m) having an ex- The construction method (although
ceptionally light appearance (Fig. 1). very crude by modern standards) is
Construction of these bridges, as indi- similar, in principle at least, to today's
cated in Fig. 2, utilized precast seg- precast prestressed segmental bridges.
ments which were post-tensioned to-
gether. Thus , by definition, these five The Tennessee prestressed block
beam bridge was followed very
structures can be called precast pre-
stressed segmental bridges. shortly by the famed Walnut Lane
Bridge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania,
Prestressing of bridges in North
in 1950. The 160-ft (48.8 m) long
America did not start until about
1949.* The first prestressed bridge in beams were cast-in-place and post-
tensioned.
the United States was built in Madi-
son County, Tennessee. This bridge Soon thereafter, precast preten-
sioned bridge girders evolved result-
*An interesting historical account of the early prestressed ing from inherent economies and
bridges in America is given by Charles C. Zollman in
"Reflections on the Beginnings of Prestressed Concrete quality control of plant fabricated
in America—Part 1: Magnel's Impact on the Advent of elements. With few exceptions, during
Prestressed Concrete; Part 2: Dynamic American En-
gineers Sustain Magnel's Momentum," PCI JOURNAL, the fifties and early sixties, most
V. 23, Nos. 3 and 4, May-June and July-August 1978, pp. multi-span precast prestressed bridges
22-48 and pp. 30-67. See also Ross Bryan's article on
"Prestressed Concrete Innovations in Tennessee," pub- built in the United States were de-
lished in the current PCI JOURNAL, pp. 14-31. signed as a series of simple spans.
58
They were designed with standard 100 to 120 ft (30.5 to 36.6 m) in length
AASHTO-PCI girders of various cross depending upon local regulations.
sections in spans ranging up to about As a result of longer span require-
100 ft (30.5 m), but more commonly ments, a study was conducted by the
for spans of 40 to 80 ft (12 to 24 m). Prestressed Concrete Institute in
The advantages of a continuous cast- cooperation with the Portland Cement
in-place structure were abandoned in Association. 4 This study proposed
favor of the more economical con- simple spans up to 140 ft (42.7 m) and
struction offered by plant produced continuous spans up to 160 ft (48.8 m)
standardized units. be constructed of standard precast
During the middle sixties a growing girders up to 80 ft (24 m) in length
concern with regard for safety of the joined together by splicing and post-
highways asserted itself. An AASHTO tensioning. To obtain longer spans the
Traffic Safety Committee report in use of inclined or haunched piers was
1967 called for: proposed. In general, these concepts
"Adoption and use of two-span utilized precast I- or box girders with
bridges for overpasses crossing di- field splices and post-tensioning for
vided highways ... to eliminate continuity.
the bridge piers normally placed This type of construction, using
adjacent to the shoulders." long standard precast prestressed
It soon became apparent that the units never quite achieved the popu-
conventional precast pretensioned larity that it merited. Despite some
AASHTO-PCI girders were limited by limitations, the method is adaptable
their transportable length and weight. for spans up to 200 ft (61 m).
Transportation over the highways The concepts developed by the
limits the precast girder to a range of PCI-PCA studies fall into the defini-
Fig. 2. Marne River Bridge near Paris, France. (Courtesy: Figg and Muller
Engineers, Inc., Tallahassee, Florida.)
ments were cast directly against the was built in 1967. The Bear River
center segment. Keys were cast at the Bridge, Digby, Nova Scotia, followed
joints so that the three precast ele- in 1972 with six interior spans of 265
ments could be joined together at the ft (80.8 m) and end spans of 203.75 ft
site in the same position they had in (62.1 m).
the precasting yard. Upon shipment to The JFK Memorial Causeway, Cor-
the job site, the three elements of a pus Christi, Texas (Fig. 4) represents
girder were post-tensioned together the first precast prestressed segmental
with cold joints.6'7 bridge completed in the United
The first major application of match States. It was opened to traffic in
cast, precast, segmental construction 1973. Designed by the Bridge Divi-
was not realized until 10 years later, sion of the Texas Highway Depart-
in 1962, in France. This structure, de- ment, this structure has a center span
signed by Jean Muller,* was the of 200 ft (61 m) with end spans of 100
Choisy-Le-Roi Bridge located south of ft (30.5 m).
Paris crossing the Seine River (Fig. 3). In the United States, currently
Since then the concept has been re- (1979), the author is aware of at least
fined and has spread from France to 24 precast segmental bridge projects
many other countries. that are either completed, in con-
The first precast segmental bridge struction, or in design and planning
to be built in North America was the stages (see Table 1). There are un-
Lievre River Bridge located on High- doubtedly many more.
way 35, 8 miles (13 km) north of Notre *Jean Muller, formerly chief engineer with Entreprises
Dame du Laus, Quebec. The bridge, Campenon Bernard, Paris, France, is currently in
partnership with Figg and Muller Engineers, Inc., with
which had a center span of 260 ft (79.2 offices in Tallahassee, Florida, Washington, D.C., and
m) and end spans of 130 ft (39.6 m), Paris, France.
62
Disadvantages
Advantages of Precast
Segmental Construction The disadvantages of precast seg-
mental construction are:
• Necessity for a high degree of
In many instances where pre- geometry control during fabrica-
stressed concrete segmental bridge tion and erection of segments.
design alternates have competed • Temperature and weather limi-
against structural steel designs they tations regarding mixing and
have proven to be cost effective. As placing epoxy joint material.
previously indicated, when compared • Lack of mild steel reinforcement
to more conventional methods of con- across the joint and therefore a
crete construction, prestressed con- limitation of tension stress across
crete segmental construction has ex- the joint.
tended the span range for concrete
bridges and is competitive in the in- It should be noted that for large-
termediate and long span range. The sized projects, it is no longer difficult
method eliminates the need for costly to set-up fully mechanized concrete
falsework and minimizes its impact on site mixing equipment. With today's
the environment. technology, it is possible to produce a
In general, the economic feasibility high quality concrete at the site.
of cast-in-place or precast segments Therefore, for large projects, it is
will be determined by site conditions, doubtful whether factory produced
site accessibility, available erection concrete has an advantage over site
equipment, time to construct and/or produced concrete except for the im-
erect the segments, and the relative portant aspect that loads and pre-
economic trade-off in transporting a stressing forces are applied at a later
finished segment as opposed to trans- age on a more mature concrete.
porting constituent materials.
Advantages
Types of Precast
The often cited advantages of pre- Segmental Construction
cast segmental construction are:
• Fabrication of the segments can
be accomplished while the sub- It has been observed' that the
structure is under construction, technology for constructing segmental
and thus, erection of the super- bridges has rapidly advanced in the
structure is speeded up. last decade. During the initial de-
• By virtue of precasting and velopment of segmental bridges they
maturity of the concrete at the were constructed by the balanced
time of erection, the time re- cantilever method.
quired for strength gain of the Currently, such techniques as
concrete is removed from the span-by-span construction, incremen-
construction critical path. tal launching, and progressive placing
• As a result of the maturity of the are also being utilized. Thus, there are
concrete at the time of erection, now a variety of design concepts and
the effects of concrete shrinkage construction methods which may be
and creep are minimized. used to economically produce seg-
• Quality control of factory pro- mental bridges for almost all site con-
duced precast concrete. ditions.
64
of the high cantilever moments during
construction, which are reduced by
moment redistribution in the final
structure, a slightly larger amount of
prestressing is required compared to a
structure supported on falsework.
In continuous structures the final
stresses in the completed structure are
substantially different from what they
were initially during cantilever con-
struction. However, subsequent con-
crete creep and steel relaxation will
tend to make the initial and final
stresses approach each other. This
means that there will be a redistribu-
tion in the moments and stresses of
the structure. In general, the negative
moments over the piers will decrease
while the positive moments at
midspan will increase by a corre-
sponding amount. This redistribution
of moments must be accommodated
in the design.
Normally in precast balanced can- Fig. 6. Konoshima Ohashi Bridge, Japan.
R
cantilever tendons
(a)
Hg. 8b. Precast segments for Kishwaukee River Bridge near Rockford, Illinois.
66
Fig. 9. Span-by-span erection (Long Key Bridge, Florida).
by-span construction has been pro- tilever concept. In this method the
posed as a successful alternative for precast segments are placed continu-
the Long Key Bridge project (currently ously from one end of the structure to
being built in the State of Florida). A the other in successive cantilevers on
structural steel trusswork (Fig. 9) is the same side of the various piers
used to support the precast segments rather than by balanced cantilevers on
which are installed progressively from each side of the pier.
one end of the structure to the other in Currently, this construction method
span increments. appears to be practical in span ranges
The steel trusswork has a length from 100 to 200 ft (30 to 60 m)? Be-
equivalent to the span of each identi- cause of the length of cantilever (one
cal interior span. It is placed by the span) in relation to construction
same floating crane that handles all depth, the stresses become excessive
precast segments and further adjusted and a moveable temporary stay ar-
by a system of hydraulic jacks with re- rangement must be used to limit the
gard to the piers. Upon completion of cantilever stresses to a reasonable
a span, the trusswork is released and level.
moved over to the next span to start a The erection procedure is illus-
new cycle of operations. As a conse- trated in Fig. 10. Segments are trans-
quence, in this method of construction ported over the completed portion of
prestressing requirements are very the deck to the tip of the cantilever
similar to those of a cast-in-place span under construction where they
structure. are positioned by a swivel crane that
Interesting variations from normal proceeds from one segment to the
precast segmental construction on the next. Approximately one-third of the
Long Key project are that dry joints span from the pier may be erected by
will he used between the segments, the free cantilever method, the seg-
i.e., no epoxy; and the longitudinal ments being held in position by ex-
prestressing tendons are external, terior ties and final prestressing ca-
namely, inside the box. bles.
In the balance of the span, each
Progressive Placing segment is temporarily held in posi-
Progressive placing is similar to the tion by external temporary ties and by
span-by-span method described above two stays from a moveable tower lo-
whereby construction starts at one end cated over the preceding pier. The
of the structure and proceeds continu- two stays are -continuous through the
ously to the other end of the structure. tower and anchored in the previously
The progressive placing method de- completed span deck. The stays are
rives its origin from the balanced can- anchored to the top flange of the box
68
Fig. 12. Lifting of precast segment for Rombas Viaduct in eastern France.
(Courtesy: Figg and Muller Engineers, Inc., Tallahassee, Florida.)
Fig. 13. Photomontage of the Linn Cove Viaduct at Blue Ridge Parkway, North
Carolina. (Courtesy of Region 15, Federal Highway Administration.)
70
Casting bed and Direction of launching - --0
etnlinnnry fnrmc
72
Fig. 18. Temporary sliding bearing. (Courtesy: Arvid Grant, Olympia, Washington.)
moved forward one stroke of the hori- centric prestress must resist the vary-
zontal jack, the vertical jack is lowered ing moments which occur as the su-
and the horizontal jack is retracted to perstructure is pushed over the piers
restart the cycle 11 to its final position.
After launching is completed, when The incremental launching tech-
the opposite abutment has been nique has been used for spans up
reached, additional prestressing is to 200 ft (60 m) without the use of
added to accommodate moments in temporary falsework bents. Spans up
the final structure. The original con- to 330 ft (100 m) have been built
Fig. 19. Jacking mechanism. (Courtesy: Fritz Leonhardt, Stuttgart, West uermany.)
Swivel cranes have only been used, The material presented herein indi-
thus far, for the progressive placing cates only the adaptation of segmental
method of construction and require construction; it is not within the scope
relocation for erection of each seg- of this paper to present specific design
ment. considerations for the various types of
bridges. The reader should consult
other literature* for design informa-
tion relative to a specific type of
Types of structure.
Segmental Bridges
Cable-Stayed Bridges
Up to this point the documentation The first cable-stayed bridge with a
of prestressed concrete segmental segmental concrete superstructure to
bridges has been concerned with what be built in the United States is the
might be classified as girder type Pasco-Kennewick Intercity Bridge
bridges. However, segmental con- crossing the Columbia River in the
struction is a versatile type of con- State of Washington (Fig. 20). The
struction applicable to other types of overall length of this structure is 2503
bridge construction and as such ft (763 m). The center cable-stay span
should not be stereotyped to girder
bridges only. As with any new con-
cept the innovative engineer should *An informative design manual on segmental construc-
tion titled Precast Segmental Box Girder Bridge Manual
be able to apply the concept to other (1978) is available from the Prestressed Concrete Insti-
types of construction. tute, Chicago, Illinois.
76
Fig. 23. Danube Canal Bridge on Vienna Airport Motorway in Austria. (Courtesy:
Figg and Muller Engineers, Inc., Tallahassee, Florida.)
is 981 ft (299 m) and the stayed flank- required. The segments are match-
ing spans are 406.5 ft (124 m). The cast, prestressed, cured and then
three main spans are assembled from transferred to the bridge, and erected
precast prestressed concrete seg- symmetrically about the two main
ments, while the approach spans are bridge towers, epoxy joined, lon-
cast-in-place on falsework. gitudinally prestressed against the
previously erected ones, and sus-
The segments are precast about 1
pended to the bridge stays. A large
mile (1.6 km) downstream from the
part of the longitudinal prestressing
bridge site (Fig. 21). Each segment is
force is provided by the compression
27 ft (8.2 m) long and consists of three
resulting from the horizontal compo-
transverse girders and a roadway slab
nent of stay-cable forces.
joined along the segment edges with a
hollow triangular box and weighs Another interesting cable-stay
about 300 tons (272 mt). The segment structure is the Danube Canal Bridge
has a constant depth of 7 ft (2 m) and located on the Vienna Airport Motor-
is 79 ft 10 in. (24.3 m) wide. way and crossing the Danube Canal at
Segments are barged directly be- an angle of 45 deg. It has a 390-ft (119
neath their place in the bridge and m) center span with 182.7-ft (55.7 m)
hoisted into position (Fig. 22). It re- side spans (Fig. 23). The structure is
quires approximately 6 hours to lift unique insofar as its construction
each segment into position. Fifty- technique is concerned. Because con-
eight precast, transversely prestressed struction was not allowed to interfere
concrete bridge girder segments are with navigation on the canal, the
structure was built in two 364-ft (111 was constructed as a one-time swing
m) halves on each bank and parallel to span.12
the canal (Fig. 24).
Upon completion, the two halves of The bridge superstructure is a
the span were swung into final posi- 51.8-ft (15.8 m) wide trapezoidal
tion and a cast-in-place closure joint three-cell box girder. An interesting
was made. In other words, each half variation in this structure is that the
Fig. 25. Precast inclined web segments for Danube Canal Bridge on Vienna
Airport Motorway in Austria. (Courtesy: Figg and Muller Engineers, Inc.,
Tallahassee, Florida.)
78
Fig. 26. Aerial view of Pont de Brotonne near Rouen, France (Reference 13).
central box is cast in 25-ft (7.6 m) long The Brotonne Bridge crosses the
segments on falsework; after the pre- Seine River downstream from Rouen
cast inclined web segments are in France. An aerial view (Fig. 26)
placed, the top slab is cast (Fig. 25). shows the general configuration of the
Thus, the system uses a combination bridge. Fig. 27 shows an isometric
of both precast and cast-in-place seg- view of a segment and the orientation
mental construction. of prestressing and stay.13
web
strut
pos t-
longitudinal
post-tensioning
/transverse
post - tension
Fig. 27. Isometric view of precast segment of Pont de Brotonne near Rouen,
France. (Courtesy: Figg and Muller Engineers, Inc., Tallahassee, Florida.)
Fig. 28. Deck cross section of Pont de Brotonne near Rouen, France (Reference 13).
The total length of the structure is spans. At present, this structure holds
4194 ft (1278 m). The central river the record length for a cable-stayed
crossing includes a 1050-ft (320 m) bridge of prestressed concrete and for
center span and 471-ft (143.5 m) side any type of concrete span.
The main deck structure is a built-in
balanced cantilever out from the
pylon piers. Dimensions of the deck
segments are, top flange 63 ft (19.2 m)
wide, bottom flange 26 ft (8 m) wide,
and a constant depth of 12.5 ft (3.8 m)
as shown in Fig. 28. Each segment is
9.8 ft (3 m) long.
Similar to the Danube Canal
Bridge, the only parts of the trapezoi-
dal box girder that are precast are its
sloping webs. The 9.8-ft (3 m) long,
13-ft (4 m) wide precast web elements
are precast at the site. The balance of
the cross section, including top and
bottom flanges and its interior stiff-
ening struts, is cast-in-place.
Final support for the deck units is
provided by 21 stays continuous
through the pylon which lie in a verti-
cal plane along the longitudinal axis of
the structure. Spacing of the stays at
deck level is 19.6 ft (6 m); thus, every
other segment has a stay anchor.
Fig. 29 shows the arrangement of
the stays and the underside of the
Fig. 29. Bottom view of deck segments segments of the Pont de Brotonne
of Pont de Brotonne near Rouen, France. (looking up the pylon piers).
80
Fig. 30. Aerial view of Gladesville Arch Bridge, Australia (Reference 14).
82
The falsework was then shifted lat- Each independent arch rib is a
erally into position to support the ad- two-cell box. The ribs are constructed
jacent arch rib and repeat the cycle. A in symmetrical cantilever halves (Fig.
view of the completed four arch ribs is 34) by the cast-in-place segmental
shown in Fig. 32. method. As each rib is cantilevered
A unique segmental arch bridge is out from its foundation, it is tem-
the Talbrucke Rottweill-Neckarburg porarily tied back to rock anchors with
located 50 miles (80 km) southwest of Dywidag bars. The roadway for this
Stuttgart, West Germany, and crosses structure is composed of parallel
the Neckar River (Fig. 33). Although single-cell box girders which are con-
the structure is constructed utilizing a structed by the incremental launching
cast-in-place segmental technique, it method (see Fig. 35 on next page).
could, with some modification in de- With some modification in design,
sign, be constructed with precast an arch bridge of this type could be
segments. constructed with precast arch rib seg-
The roadway of this 1197-ft (365 m) ments. The segments could be po-
long structure is approximately 310 ft sitioned perhaps with the assistance of
(95 m) above the river. The 507-ft (154 a high-line, held in position with tem-
m) arch span has a rise of 164 ft (50 porary prestressing until permanent
m). Roadway width is 102 ft (31 m). prestressing is installed and supported
The entire structure is actually con- by the back stays until closure.
structed in two independent lon-
gitudinal halves, which are joined to-
Rigid Frame Bridges
gether along the abutting edges of the
roadway trapezoidal box girder The Brielse Maas Bridge, near Rot-
flanges. terdam, Holland, is a distinctive
Fig. 36. General view of Brielse Maas Bridge near Rotterdam, Holland.
(Courtesy: Brice Bender, BVN/STS.)
84
A = Steel frame
B= Jacks
C= Rubber bearing
D= Joints
Fig. 37. Erection frame for Brielse Maas Bridge near Rotterdam,
Holland. (Courtesy: Brice Bender, BVN /STS.)
structure with its V-shaped piers (Fig. just, by means of jacks, the loads in
36). Transversely the structure is the inclined legs of the pier during
made up of three precast single-cell various erection stages (Fig. 37). The
boxes which are joined together at inclined legs are connected to the
their flange tips with a longitudinal deck structure by post-tensioning and
closure placement and are trans- the V-pier is supported at its base
versely prestressed. through neoprene bearing pads on
A special structural steel frame was piers founded on piles (Fig. 37).
used to position the inclined precast
hollow box legs of the piers and to The Bonhomme Bridge over the
support the seven precast roadway Blavet River in Morbihan, France, is a
girder segments prior to casting the slant leg rigid frame of cast-in-place
joints at the corners of the delta pier segments (Fig. 38). The span between
portion of the structure. This frame is the foundations of the slant legs is 611
also utilized to balance the pier dur- ft (186.25 m). A tubular steel falsework.
ing erection of the balance of the was used to temporarily support the
roadway girder segments and to ad- slant legs until closure at midspan.
Fig. 38. Bonhomme Bridge, Morbihan, France. (Courtesy: Figg and Muller
Engineers, Inc., Tallahassee, Florida.)
86
References
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