Investigation for bridge construction

Aim of investigation
• To select the most suitable location, type of structures satisfying,
• Optimum cost
• Road alignment
• demands of traffic, the stream, safety and aesthetics.
Investigation for Bridges
• Selecting the following parameters should be carried out under bridge investigation.
• Service life
• Location of the bridge
• Deck level
• Bridge type
• Span
• Piers
• Abutments
Bad decisions regarding location and the structure can lead to several problems. A high
investment is needed to construct a bridge, so it’s important to make the right decisions first.
Preliminary Engineering – Desk Study
• Collect topographical maps – contour surveys available from the Survey Department.
• Remote sensing images if available.
• Aerial photographs – stability of stream by viewing photographs of multiple years.
Preliminary Data to be Collected
1. Name of the river / road, probable bridge location, any close by bridges on the same river
2. Location of the nearest available benchmark
3. Present and anticipated future volume and nature of traffic
4. Hydraulic data pertaining to river
5. Soil profiles
6. Navigational requirements of the stream (if any)
7. Material availability to locations (source locations and transportation)
8. Utility and service supply during construction
Design Service Life
• Permanent structure (Service Life > 40 years) ; to carry the specified loads
• Temporary structure ; when an anticipated future development after some time will increase
the desired capacity (low cost temporary bridge until the development occurs – permanent
abutments and a light deck may be a wise alternative)
Location of the Bridge Following features are ideal conditions,
• Straight reach of river
• Meandering River

Location of the Bridge (contd.)

• Steady stream flow - no serious whirls/ cross currents
• Narrow channel with firm banks
• Suitable high banks (above high flood level)
• Rock bed (or any other hard inerodible strata) close to river bed level
• Economical approaches
• Appropriate horizontal alignment of the road to be connected (no sharp curves in approach)
• Appropriate vertical alignment
• Absence of expensive river training work
 • Absence of excessive underwater construction
• Traditional crossing point
• Care should be taken to investigate a number of probable alternative sites and then decide
on the site which is likely to serve the needs of the bridge at the least cost
• However, it is not always possible to have a wide choice of sites for a bridge
Deck Level
• Determination of the deck level should be done based on a hydraulic study
• When a bridge structure and its associated embankments encroach upon the flow of a river
in flood, there is a risk to the structure, the embankments and the surrounding land
• It is not economical, however, to build a bridge to clear a wide floodplain because bridge
works cost more than earth embankments
• Often bridges are designed to accommodate annual high flows without excessively
restricting the flow of the river
River Survey
• Obtain the following data: o Ordinary Flood Level (OFL) o Lowest Water Level (LWL) o
Highest Flood Level (HFL) - highest known flood is termed the high flood (HF) o Design
Flood Level (DFL) - The annual high flow is termed the design flood
River Flow Maximum discharge to be estimated by;
• Empirical formulae
• Rational method
• Area-velocity method
• Records of flood discharge It is preferred to estimate the flood discharge by at least two of
the above methods
River Flow
• Restricting the flow of the design flood can cause either excessive backwater, resulting in
flooding upstream, or scour that may damage the structure.
• The bridge parts should also be designed to withstand the high flood
• On important roads the bridges may be designed for a design flood occurring no more than
once every ten years and a high flood once every hundred years.
• A minor road may be served by bridges or low water crossings (causeways) allowing water
to flow over for a few days every year.
• The bridge designer is required to select a design flood level (DFL), a design discharge (ie.
flow volume), and a design velocity, on which to base calculations of waterway geometry,
foundation depth, scour protection and vertical clearance.
• The design flood is the maximum flow that can pass through the bridge without:
• causing unacceptable disruption to traffic;
• endangering the pier and abutment foundations with scour;
• damaging approach embankments;
• causing flood damage on the upstream side of embankments.
• The high flood is the rarely occurring flow that it is uneconomical to include in the design
flood, but which may be considered when designing the superstructure and piers of the
bridge.
Scouring
• Scour is the erosive effect of water flow on the river bed or banks.
• Scouring occur when the velocity of the stream exceeds the limiting velocity of the
particles in the stream bed could withstand
• Bridge works may alter the existing scour pattern by restricting the free flow of the stream.
• About 50% of river bridge failures are due to scour

Scour Protection
• River and scour protection is usually required where a bridge is built across a meandering
stream or when some restriction to the flow of the design flood occurs at a bridge
• Protection measures can take the form of
o Rip rap on slopes or river bed
o Gabions o Groynes
o Piled walls
o Vegetation.

Bridge Type
• The designer should consider all the preliminary data made available to him from the
detailed investigation before arriving at a solution
• The entire complete structure should be the most suitable to carry the desired traffic,
adequately strong to support incident loads, economical and aesthetically pleasing
Bridge Type Factors influencing the choice
• Economics / available funds
• Approaches
• Level of permissible interference to the flow below
• Climate and environmental conditions
• Scenery from the bridge
• Topographic conditions
• Subsoil conditions
• Type of traffic
• Navigational clearance
Bridge Width
• Single lane (less than 200 vehicles per day; 3.7m for traffic and 1.5m each for shoulders)
• One and a half lanes (two lanes of light traffic; 4.6m)
• Two lanes or more
Span
• When the span is high, superstructure cost is high and substructure cost is low
• Experience has shown that at the most economical span length,
superstructure cost = substructure cost.
Piers
Piers are required to reduce the span of the deck;
• Carries the vertical and horizontal loads of the deck
• Generally, piers are under water
• Should be designed to withstand hydraulic pressures and impact loads

Abutments
Abutments serve the following purposes:
• Supports the dead loads of the deck (superstructure)
• Resists the vertical and horizontal live loads
• Retain the approach embankments
• Provide a smooth transition from the road surface to the bridge deck

Location of Piers and Abutments Factors to be considered

• Foundation conditions
• Economical span
• Navigational requirements
• Aesthetic requirements
• River flow

It is preferred to align the piers and abutments parallel to the main direction of flow in the
stream.
Traffic
• Estimate the type and volume of traffic likely to use the bridge over the service life
• Determine the current traffic and use a reasonable growth factor
Design Loading
• Most countries have some form of design loading standards for bridges
• Available standards o British Standards
o AASHTO
o Euro Code
Subsoil Exploration
• The aim of the preliminary exploration is to get a general idea
• The detailed investigation would call for careful sampling and thorough study of the
engineering properties of soil and rock
• Following methods can be used:
o Test pits
o Hand auger boring
o Cable percussion boring
o Rotary drilling
o Geophysical surveying
Information from Soil Investigation
• Nature of soil deposits
• Depth and thickness of soil strata
• Groundwater table
• Depth to bed rock
• Engineering properties of soils and rock

Investigation for Bridge Site

• A bridge may be defined as a structure built over a river, a dry valley or any
depressed part of land to provide a link between the two opposite sides.

• The foundation of bridge piers and abutments require a serious geological

investigation.

• An ideal site for the construction of a bridge in is the one across the valley cut in
a sound rock and where the river flow is free from scouring due to bends, tributaries
and other causes.

• The chief factors which govern the stability of bridges are lateral forces,
earthquake forces and scouring action of river.

• Pressure from bridge and running water are the main lateral forces.

• Piers should be founded at depth safe from scouring erosion.

• In many cases, the location of a bridge is decided more by socio-economic

factors than geological considerations.

• In big cities divided by streams and rivers, a bridge has to be places where
necessary irrespective of subsurface geology.

• But in highways there is often some flexibility available in the choice of

placement of a bridge.

• In any major bridge construction project, the bridge abutment and piers should
be kept on sound, strong and stable rock foundation below as possible.

• River bed are covered by varying thickness of unconsolidated natural deposits

of sand, gravels and boulders not safe for foundation of bridge pier.

• The piers placed directly on them would be unstable.

• The depth of sound rock may vary from 5-20 m in some to more than 100 m in
others.

• Drill holes are made all along the centre line of the proposed bridge, even on
the banks sound rock sequence are reached.

• Height of individual piers may vary according to the depth of the sound bedrock
below the surface as each them should be founded on the stable rock.

• The nature of the bed rock is commonly determined by the study of petrological
characters and engineering properties, especially the strength values, using the core
samples obtained during drilling of test bore holes.

• A decision to place the pier on a particular rock at a particular depth is matter of

judgement and design requirement.

• Most igneous and massive sedimentary and metamorphic rocks like gneiss,
quartzite are considered sound for bridge foundation.

• Weak rocks which might behave badly in presence of water include cavernous
limestone, fractured sandstone especially with clayey cements, shales, clays, slate,
schist and the layer of peat and compressible organic material.

• Presence of harder rock over weaker rocks, rock heterogeneity, zones of

weathering etc. are not favourable sites for bridge foundation which should be
treated.
• Horizontal attitude and uniformly massive structure with depth are desirable
characters on the foundation rocks as these offer resistance against failure.

• Even inclined rock in a confined situation are considered safe if they possess
normal strength values.

• Fracturing and highly jointing is undesirable for the foundation as they might
cause settlement beyond allowable limits.

• When bridge is aligned across the strike, various types of rocks with varying
strength may be encountered along the foundation, which necessitates a close
examination of foundation rock under each pier and abutment.

• Fault zones are to be avoided as the foundation, as any further displacement

along these planes will adversely affect the bridge.

Types of Loads Considered for Design of Bridge Structures

Various types of loads are considered for design of bridge structures. These loads and their
combinations decides the safety of the bridge construction during its use under all
circumstances. The design loads should be considered properly for perfect design of bridge.
Different design loads acting on bridges are explained below.

Types of Loads for Design of Bridge Structures

Various design loads to be considered in the design of bridges are:

1. Dead load
2. Live load
3. Impact load
4. Wind load
5. Longitudinal forces
6. Centrifugal forces
7. Buoyancy effect
8. Effect of water current
9. Thermal effects
10. Deformation and horizontal effects
11. Erection stresses
12. Seismic loads

Dead Load
The dead load is nothing but a self-weight of the bridge elements. The different elements of
bridge are deck slab, wearing coat, railings, parapet, stiffeners and other utilities. It is the
first design load to be calculated in the design of bridge
Live Load
The live load on the bridge, is moving load on the bridge throughout its length. The moving
loads are vehicles, Pedestrians etc. but it is difficult to select one vehicle or a group of
vehicles to design a safe bridge.
So, IRC recommended some imaginary vehicles as live loads which will give safe results
against the any type of vehicle moving on the bridge. The vehicle loadings are categorized in
to three types and they are

IRC class AA loading

IRC class A loading

IRC class B loading

IRC Class AA Loading

This type of loading is considered for the design of new bridge especially heavy loading
bridges like bridges on highways, in cities, industrial areas etc. In class AA loading generally
two types of vehicles considered, and they are

 Tracked type
 Wheeled type

IRC Class A Loading

This type of loading is used in the design of all permanent bridges. It is considered as
standard live load of bridge. When we design a bridge using class AA type loading, then it
must be checked for class A loading also.
IRC Class B Loading
This type of loading is used to design temporary bridges like Timber Bridge etc. It is
considered as light loading. Both IRC class A and Class B are shown in below figure.
Impact Loads
The Impact load on bridge is due to sudden loads which are caused when the vehicle is
moving on the bridge. When the wheel is in movement, the live load will change periodically
from one wheel to another which results the impact load on bridge.
To consider impact loads on bridges, an impact factor is used. Impact factor is a multiplying
factor which depends upon many factors such as weight of vehicle, span of bridge, velocity
of vehicle etc. The impact factors for different IRC loadings are given below.
For IRC Class AA Loading and 70R Loading

Span Vehicle type Impact factor

25% up to 5m and linearly

Tracked vehicle reducing to 10% from 5 m to 9 m.
Less than 9
meters
Wheeled vehicle 25% up to 9 m

Tracked vehicle 10% up to 40 m

(RCC bridge)
Greater than 9
meters
Wheeled vehicle 25% up to 12m
(RCC bridge)
 Tracked vehicle 10% for all spans
(steel bridge)

Wheeled vehicle 25% up to 23 m

(steel bridge)

If the length exceeds in any of the above limits, the impact factor should be considered
from the graph given by IRC which is shown below.

For IRC class A and class B loadings

Impact factor If = A/(B+L)

Where L = span in meters

A and B are constants

Bridge type A B

RCC 4.5 6.0

Steel 9.0 13.50

Apart from the super structure impact factor is also considered for substructures

For bed blocks, If = 0.5

For substructure up to the depth of 3 meters If = 0.5 to 0

For substructure greater than 3 m depth If = 0

 Wind Loads
Wind load also an important factor in the bridge design. For short span bridges, wind load
can be negligible. But for medium span bridges, wind load should be considered for
substructure design. For long span bridges, wind load is considered in the design of super
structure.
Longitudinal Forces
The longitudinal forces are caused by braking or accelerating of vehicle on the bridge. When
the vehicle stops suddenly or accelerates suddenly it induces longitudinal forces on the bridge
structure especially on the substructure. So, IRC recommends 20% of live load should be
considered as longitudinal force on the bridges.
Centrifugal Forces
If bridge is to be built on horizontal curves, then the movement of vehicle along curves will
cause centrifugal force on to the super structure. Hence, in this case design should be done for
centrifugal forces also.
Centrifugal force can be calculated by C (kN/m) = (WV2)/(12.7R)|
Where

W = live load (kN)

V = Design speed (kmph)
R = Radius of curve (m)

Buoyancy Effect
Buoyancy effect is considered for substructures of large bridges submerged under deep water
bodies. Is the depth of submergence is less it can be negligible.
Forces by Water Current
When the bridge is to be constructed across a river, some part of the substructure is under
submergence of water. The water current induces horizontal forces on submerged portion.
The forces caused by water currents are maximum at the top of water level and zero at the
bottom water level or at the bed level.
The pressure by water current is P = KW [V2/2g]
Where P = pressure (kN/m2)
K = constant (value depending upon shape of pier)
W = unit weight of water
V = water current velocity (m/s)
G = acceleration due to gravity (m/s2)
Thermal Stresses
Thermal stresses are caused due to temperature. When the temperature is very high or very
low they induce stresses in the bridge elements especially at bearings and deck joints. These
stresses are tensile in nature so, concrete cannot withstand against this and cracks are formed.
To resist this, additional steel reinforcement perpendicular to main reinforcement should be
provided. Expansion joints are also provided.

Seismic Loads
When the bridge is to be built in seismic zone or earthquake zone, earthquake loads must be
considered. They induce both vertical and horizontal forces during earthquake. The amount
of forces exerted is mainly depends on the self-weight of the structure. If weight of structure
is more, larger forces will be exerted.

Deformation and Horizontal Effects

Deformation stresses are occurred due to change is material properties either internally or
externally. The change may be creep, shrinkage of concrete etc. similarly horizontal forces
will develop due to temperature changes, braking of vehicles, earthquakes etc. Hence, these
are also be considered as design loads in bridge design.

Erection Stresses

Erection stress are induced by the construction equipment during the bridge construction.
These can be resisted by providing suitable supports for the members.

13.
14.
 Bridge bearing
Bridge bearing:
A bridge bearing is a component of a bridge which typically provides a resting surface
between bridge piers and the bridge deck. The purpose of a bearing is to allow controlled
movement and thereby reduce the stresses involved. Movement could be thermal
expansion or contraction, or movement from other sources such as seismic activity. There
are several different types of bridge bearings which are used depending on a number of
different factors including the bridge span. The oldest form of bridge bearing is simply two
plates resting on top of each other. A common form of modern bridge bearing is
the elastomeric bridge bearing. Another type of bridge bearing is the mechanical bridge
bearing. There are several types of mechanical bridge bearing, such as the pinned bearing,
which in turn includes specific types such as the rocker bearing, and the roller bearing.
Another type of mechanical bearing is the fixed bearing, which allows rotation, but not
other forms of movement.
Bridge bearings are structural equipment or devices installed between bridge substructure
and superstructure to transfer the applied load including earthquake loads; wind loads;
traffic loads; and superstructure self-weight.

Bridge bearings also makes rooms for relative movements between superstructure and
substructure, for instance, rotation movements and translational movements in horizontal
and transverse direction.

Bearing used in the construction of bridge structure is divided into two major categories
namely expansion bearings and fixed bearings. The former permits both translational and
rotational movements whereas the latter allow rotational and limited translational
movements.

There are several types of bridge bearings which have been employed in bridge construction
which are discussed below.
Types of Bridge Bearings and their Details
Different types of bearings for bridges include:
Sliding bearings
Rocker and pin bearings
Roller bearings
Elastomeric bearings
Curved bearings
Pot bearings
Disk bearings
Sliding Bearings for Bridges
Sliding bearing consist of two metal plates, commonly stainless-steel plates, that slide
relative to each other and hence makes room for translational movement and lubricating
material between them .
 Sliding Bridge Bearing

A friction force is generated in sliding bearing and it is imposed on substructure,

superstructure and sliding bearing itself. So, it may be required to provide lubricant such as
polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) to decline generated friction.
It is specified by ASSHTO that sliding bearing cannot be used unless the bridge span is
smaller than 15m. This is because sliding bearing cannot be purely used if the bridge
experiences rotation movement.
However, the span restriction for sliding bearing utilization can be disregarded when it is
used in combination with other bearing types.
Rocker and Pin Bearings for Bridge Structures
Rocker is an expansion bearing composed of curved surface at the bottom, which
accommodate translational movement and a pin at the top makes room for rotation
movement.

Fig.2: Rocker Bridge Bearing Fig.3: Rocker Bridge Bearing

Pin bearing is a fixed bearing that make room for rotation movement through the
application of steel pin. It has similar structure and component like rocker bearing apart
from the bottom of pin bearing which is flat and fixed to the concrete pie.

Fig.4: Pin Bearing for Bridges

Both rocker and pin bearings are mainly employed in steel bridge structure. Rocker and pin
bearing should be considered when the bridge movement is adequately known and
described, since such bearings can make rooms for both translational and rotational
movements in one direction only.

These bearings are likely to suffer deterioration and corrosion, so it is necessary to conduct
regular inspection and maintenance.

Roller Bearings for Bridges

Roller bearing can be used in the construction of reinforced concrete and steel bridge
structure. There are two main configurations including single roller bearing which is
composed of one roller placed between two plates and multiple roller bearing that consist
of several rollers installed between two plates.
The former as shown in Figure-5 can accommodate both rotation and translation movement
in longitudinal direction and it is cheap to manufacture but its vertical load capacity is
limited.
In contrary, the latter as shown in Figure-6 can make room for translation movement only
and rotation movement can be accommodated if rollers are combined with pin bearing.
Multiple roller bearings are expensive and support considerably large vertical loads.
Regular inspection and rehabilitation should be conducted since roller bearing are
susceptible to corrosion and damages.
Elastomeric Bearings for Bridge Structures
It consists of elastomer manufactured from synthetic or natural rubber and can take both
translation and rotation movements through elastomer deformation. The ability of
elastomer to carry large vertical loads is because of reinforcement provision that prevents
lateral bulging of elastomer.
There are number of elastomeric bearing pads classified based on types of reinforcements
used. For example, steel reinforced, plain, fiberglass reinforced and cotton duck reinforced
elastomeric bearing pads.
Strength and response of each type is different, steel reinforced elastomeric bearing is the
strongest one and plain elastomeric pad is the weakest.
Elastomeric bearing is neither expensive nor requires considerable maintenance, that is why
it the most desired bearing type. Figure-7 show details of elastomeric bearing and its
application in bridge structure. Fig.7: Elastomeric Bridge Bearing
Curved Bearings for Bridges
It consists of two curved plate that match each other as shown in Figure 8. If curved bearing
is cylindrical, then it only accommodates rotation movements. However, both rotation and
translational movements can be dealt with if curved bearing is spherical.
Due to the fact that both gravity loads and curved geometry generate lateral resistance
against and consequently lateral movement would be limited, that is why
polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) slider is adhered to the bearings in order to make rooms for
lateral movements. Details of curve bearings can be seen in Figure-8.

Fig.8: Spherical Bearing for Bridges

Pot Bearings for Bridge Structures

As shown in Figure-9, pot bearing consists of elastomeric disk confined in a pot, steel piston
that is properly tailored into the pot wall and flat sealing rings which keeps elastomeric
inside the pot.
Pot bearing can support considerable vertical loads and it is commonly transferred through
steel piston to the elastomeric disc which is almost incompressible. As far as lateral load is
concerned, it is transferred as the steel pistol moves toward pot wall.
Translational movement is limited in pure pot bearing that is why PTFE are introduced to
the sliding surface to make rooms for translation movement.

Fig.9: Pot Bridge Bearing

Disk Bearings for Bridges

Different components of disk bearing are shown in Figure-10 in detail. Rotation movement
is accommodated through the deformation of elastomer whereas the translation movement
is considered through the application of PTFE slider.
 Fig.10: Disk Bearing

The utilized elastomer should be adequately hard to support vertical loads without suffering
large deformations and sufficiently flexible to allow rotational movement.

Both vertical loads and lateral loads are supported by elastomeric disk and metal ring in the
center of the bearing respectively.

Bearing function

Permit lateral movements due to temperature change, traffic movements, wind, shrinkage
and creep, foundation movement, seismic actions, dynamic forces and resulting vibrations

Transmitting load to substructure foundations

Accommodate girder rotation

Support vertical loads