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Indexed by:Journal Papers

Date of Publication:2020-06-01

Journal:ENGINEERING STRUCTURES

Included Journals:SCIE

Volume:212

ISSN No.:0141-0296

Key Words:Innovative system; Seismic-resilient bridge; Replaceable structural fuse; Rocking pier; Low-damage bridge

Abstract:It is crucial for highway bridges to remain operational after strong earthquakes as they are critical infrastructures to transport resources. In this study, an innovative seismic-resilient bridge structural system, named controlled rocking dual-fused bridge (CRDFB) system, is proposed. The CRDFB system is designed to dissipate the earthquake energy by the use of replaceable Lead-Extrusion Dampers (LEDs) at the base of the rocking piers. The state-of-the-art Equivalent Energy Design Procedure (EEDP) is adopted and modified to design the CRDFB system to achieve different performance at different levels of shaking intensities. The proposed step-by-step EEDP allows engineers to design the CRDFB system to achieve the desired performance objectives with simple hand calculations and without iterations. A 2-span and a 3-span CRDFB prototypes located in Vancouver, Canada, are designed using the proposed EEDP. To validate the performance of the proposed CRDFB system, advanced three-dimensional analytical models of prototypes are developed using OpenSees and subjected to a broad array of two-dimensional and three-dimensional nonlinear time history analyses. Simulation results show that CRDFB prototypes can successfully achieve the targeted performance, as specified by EEDP design, at different shaking intensities. Hence, the proposed CRDFB system can be designed efficiently using the EEDP design procedure outlined in this paper, and be used as an efficient, reliable, and resilient seismic force-resisting bridge system for high seismic zones.