Steel-Free Bridge Decks

Defy Corrosion
By building concrete bridge decks having no internal steel
reinforcement, Canada is eliminating the source of corrosion
problems
By Baidar Bakht and Aftab A. Mufti
he cancerous corrosion of
T reinforcing steel in highway
bridge decks exposed to salt-
laden air or deicing salts leads to
ongoing problems of maintenance,
repair, and even deck replacement. But
recent Canadian research and ensuing
code developments now point the way
to a cure: Build concrete bridge-deck
slabs free of internal steel reinforce-
ment. The satisfactory performance of
the steel-free deck slabs of five
Canadian bridges under unrestricted
traffic solidly supports the validity of
the concept.
Relying on arch action
The typical concrete slab-on-gird-
er highway bridge deck, with support-
ing girders spaced at about 7 feet,
requires roughly 6 pounds per square
foot of steel
reinforce-
ment when designed for bending.
However, the Ontario Highway
Bridge Design Codes of 1979, 1983,
and 1992 (Ref. 1) included an empiri-
cal design method for deck slabs that
took into account their inherent arch-
ing action in such slabs. Following the
OHBDC method, designers could
reduce steel content of the slabs by
approximately one-third. Hundreds of
deck slabs have been designed by this
method in Ontario and in other parts
of the world.
Researchers at Dalhousie Uni-
versity, Halifax, Nova Scotia (former-
ly the Technical University of Nova
Scotia), and at the Ministry of
Transportation of Ontario have gone
even further in exploiting the arch
action of deck slabs. Based on tests on
both small- and large-scale laboratory
models, they concluded that a deck
slab supported by parallel longitudi-
nal beams does not require any rein-
forcement, provided that the slab is
suitably confined in both longitudinal
and transverse directions (Ref. 2). In
the longitudinal direction, the deck
slab is confined by making it compos-
ite with the beams and by using edge
beams having suitably high flexural
rigidity in the plane of the slab.

The Crowchild Trail Bridge in Calgary, Alberta, prior to deck reha-

bilitation with a steel-free concrete slab 7.3 inches thick. Figure 1
(next page) shows design details of the deck rehabilitation.
 ments for the transverse confinement
0.75-inch diam. Double- system, which is essential to ensure
Headed Stainless
Steel Bar @ 12 inches arch action in the slab. To control
3 - 0.87-inch diam. early cracking, CHBDC sets minimum
Studs on Straps GFRP Bars requirements for the use of randomly

41 inches
distributed low-modulus fibers in the
7.3 inches GFRP Bars concrete. The requirement for the
5.1 inches
addition of fibers is quantified
through an index Ri, which is
obtained as the ratio of load required
2 x 0.8-inch to fail a precracked beam to the load
Steel Strap required to crack the beam.
@ 3.9 feet

6.6 feet 6.6 feet 3.4 feet

Figure 1. A cross-sectional view of
the Crowchild Trail Bridge after
rehabilitation. Studded steel
straps laid directly on the steel
girders, but not welded, provide
transverse confinement.
Haunching of the steel-free slab
above the girders leaves space for
form removal and minimizes strap
contact with the slab. Because of
the cantilever overhang, GFRP
bars were used to resist trans-
verse negative moments. A solid
barrier rail also was added.
Transversely, slab confinement is pro-
vided by keeping the top flanges of the
girders from moving laterally (for
example, by welding steel straps to
them). Where deck slabs cantilever
out beyond the girders, some rein-
forcement may be needed.
New code provisions
As a result of significant research
and experimental construction in the
field, the new Canadian Highway
Bridge Design Code (Ref. 5), succes-
sor to OHBDC, includes provisions
for steel-free deck slabs. The new code
requires the thickness of a steel-free
deck slab to be at least 6.9 inches or 1⁄15
of the beam spacing, whichever is
larger. The code also defines require-
Success stories
The four cast-in-place bridge-
deck slabs described here, all built in
Canada between 1995 and 1998, have
successfully applied the steel-free
design concept. A fifth bridge deck
(Ref. 4), constructed in British
Columbia in 1997, has precast deck
panels made without internal steel. All
of these bridge-deck slabs contain
polypropylene fibers to reduce plastic
shrinkage cracking and to provide
post-crack ductility for the slab under
load. The fibers are considered sec-
ondary reinforcement and do not
enhance the strength properties of the
concrete.
Salmon River Bridge. The first
steel-free deck slab was constructed
on the Trans Canada Highway and
opened to traffic in December 1995.
The steel-plate-girder bridge across

Comparison of Canadian bridge-deck slabs

built without internal steel
Bridge Girder type, Slab Polypropylene fiber Unique features
spacing thickness, content, % by volume
in.
Salmon River, Steel plate, 7.9 0.55 First steel-free deck slab in new
Kemptown, Nova 8.9 ft (8.4 lb/cu yd) construction; transverse confine-
Scotia ment by welded steel straps.

Chatham, Ontario
Steel plate, 6.9 0.55 First steel-free deck slab in reha-
7 ft (8.4 lb/cu yd) bilitation work; transverse con-
finement by welded steel straps.
CFRP reinforcement for trans-
verse negative bending.

Crowchild Trail,
Calgary, Alberta
Steel plate, 7.3 0.44 First steel-free deck slab on con-
6.6 ft (6.7 lb/cu yd) tinuous-span bridge; transverse
confinement by studded straps,
and GFRP reinforcement for
transverse negative moment.

Waterloo Creek, Precast concrete, 7.5 0.44 First steel-free deck slab on pre-
British Columbia 9.2 ft (6.7 lb/cu yd) cast concrete girders; transverse
confinement by studded straps.

the Salmon River in Nova Scotia has
two simply supported spans, each 102
feet long. One of the spans has an 8.9-
inch-thick concrete deck slab, with
steel reinforcement designed by the
empirical method of the OHBDC
(Ref. 1). The other span has a 7.9-
inch-thick concrete slab containing no
tensile reinforcement, but with
chopped polypropylene fibers ran-
domly mixed at a volume of 0.55%
(8.4 pounds per cubic yard). Since
eastbound traffic passes over the steel-
reinforced deck and then over the
steel-free deck, this structure provides
an excellent opportunity for compar-
ing the performance of conventional
and steel-free deck slabs (Ref. 3).
Figure 3. The first known steel-
free deck slab on precast con-
crete girders was placed on this
British Columbia bridge, opened
to traffic in 1998. Studded
straps at a 4.1-foot spacing pro-
vide transverse confinement for
the 7.5-inch-thick slab.
Figure 2. View from
below the deck of the
Salmon River Bridge
in Nova Scotia shows
the steel straps weld-
ed to the top flanges
of the girders to pro-
vide transverse con-
finement for the steel-
free deck slab.
The deck is supported on steel
plate girders spaced 8.9 feet on center.
Straps welded to the top flange of the
girders at a spacing of 3.9 feet provide
transverse confinement (Fig. 2).
Because of the virtual absence of can-
tilever overhangs, and a direct connec-
tion of the barrier wall to the cross
frames of the bridge, the steel-free
deck is not subject to transverse nega-
tive moments calling for supplemen-
tary reinforcement.
The contractor quoted the follow-
ing unit prices (Canadian) for the
Salmon River bridge deck: $13.28 per
square foot for the conventional slab
and $14.12 per square foot for the
steel-free slab. A primary reason for
the 6% premium for the steel-free slab
was that the contractor, having no
experience with fiber-reinforced con-
crete, was wary of problems with the
new mix. His apprehension proved
unjustified. As demonstrated on
another project, a steel-free deck slab
can be more economical than conven-
tional reinforced concrete, even on a
first-cost basis. Enhanced durability
makes it even more economical on a
life-cycle-cost basis.
Chatham Bridge. The second
steel-free deck slab, only 6.9 inches
thick, was cast on the existing steel
girders of a highway bridge in
Chatham, Ontario, in 1996. Because
it has cantilever overhangs, which
require some reinforcement, it con-
tains a grid of carbon-fiber-reinforced
plastic (CFRP) near the top surface.
Transverse confinement was provided
by galvanized steel straps welded to
the top flanges of the girders at a 3.3-
foot spacing. As in all bridges using
this technology, the straps lie well
clear of the haunched slab. With a
large gap between the straps and the
slab, crews had no difficulty removing
the slab formwork. The unit cost of
the deck slab was significantly higher
than that of a conventional deck,
however, due to the use of the expen-
sive CFRP grid for negative reinforce-
ment. Such an increase in initial cost is
unlikely to be acceptable to most
bridge owners, even though the life-
cycle cost is favorable.
Crowchild Trail Bridge. The
Crowchild Trail Bridge, Calgary,
Alberta, was rehabilitated with a new
steel-free deck slab and reopened to
traffic in 1997. The 7.3-inch-thick
slab rests on steel plate girders at 6.6-
foot spacings (Fig. 1). Having can-
tilever overhangs, it resembles the
Chatham bridge deck, but less-expen-
sive glass-fiber-reinforced-plastic
(GFRP) rods were used to provide
reinforcement for the transverse can-
tilever moments and for the barrier
walls. Because of girder continuity
over three spans, longitudinal GFRP
rods also were needed to resist crack-
ing stresses over the two piers.
The cast-in-place deck slab con-
tains polypropylene fibers at a volume
of 0.44%. Straps containing welded
shear studs directly over the girders
provide transverse confinement, and
despite the lack of a direct connection
to the girders, are as effective as weld-
ed straps.
In this rehabilitation project,
alternative bids were sought for con-
ventional as well as steel-free deck
slabs. The steel-free slab had the lower
bid, thus confirming that the more
durable slab can also be cheaper.
Waterloo Creek Bridge. Opened
to traffic in 1998, the Waterloo Creek
Bridge in British Columbia is made up
of precast concrete girders with a sin-
gle span of 82 feet, spaced 9.2 feet on
center (Fig. 3). The steel-free deck slab
is 7.5 inches thick. Like the Salmon
River structure, this bridge has no
cantilever overhangs and thus needs
no transverse tension reinforcement.
Horizontal loads on the barrier rails
are transferred directly to the concrete
girders and steel cross frames. Studded
straps at a 4.1-foot spacing provide
transverse confinement.
Patented technology
The concepts of both cast-in-place
and precast steel-free deck slabs are
protected by patents. The patent for
cast-in-place, steel-free deck slabs has
been granted in the United States, the
United Kingdom, and France, and is
pending in Germany, Canada, and
Japan. A global patent for steel-free
precast arch panels is pending.
Licensing opportunities for use of the
patented technology are available.
The chief benefits of a steel-free
concrete bridge deck are lower life-
cycle and user costs. By eliminating
the source of corrosion, designers can
extend the service life of the deck and
substantially cut maintenance and
repair costs. In addition, there is less
need to delay or reroute traffic for
deck repairs. ■
Baidar Bakht is adjunct professor of
civil engineering at Dalhousie
University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, and
vice president, of JMB Structures
Research Inc., Toronto. Aftab A. Mufti
is professor of civil engineering and
director of the Nova Scotia CAD/Cam
Centre, Dalhousie University. Both
authors are professional engineers.
References
1. Ontario Highway Bridge Design Code
(OHBDC), Ministry of Transportation of
Ontario, Downsview, Ontario, Canada,
1979, 1983, and 1992.
2. Aftab A. Mufti, Baidar Bakht, and
Leslie G. Jaeger, Bridge Superstructures:
New Developments, National Book
Foundation, Islamabad, Pakistan, 1996.
3. John P. Newhook and Aftab A. Mufti,
“A Reinforcing Steel-Free Concrete Deck
Slab for the Salmon River Bridge,”
Concrete International, June 1996, pp.
30-34.
4. Baidar Bakht and Aftab A. Mufti,
“Taking the Steel Reinforcement Out of
Precast Bridge Deck Slabs,” The Concrete
Producer, January 1999, pp. 45-49.
5. Canadian Highway Bridge Design
Code, issued by the Canadian Standards
Association, Toronto, 1998.
Publication #C00B087
Copyright© 2000, The Aberdeen Group
a division of Hanley-Wood, Inc.
All rights reserved