Principal Investigator
- Cathy French, Professor Ermerata, Civil, Environmental and Geo-Engineering
Co-Investigators
-
Carol Shield, Former Professor, Civil, Environmental and Geo-Engineering
Summary
The Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) has developed a design for a precast composite slab-span
system (PCSSS) to be used in accelerated bridge construction. The system consists of shallow inverted-tee precast
beams placed between supports with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete placed on top, forming a composite slab-span
system. Suitable for spans between 20 and 60 ft., the MnDOT PCSSS is useful for replacing a large number of
aging conventional slab-span bridges throughout the United States highway system. The PCSSS has particular
durability, constructability, and economical concerns that affect its value as a viable bridge design. To address
these concerns, the performance of existing PCSSS bridges was evaluated and a review of a number of PCSSS
design details was conducted. The field inspections demonstrated that design changes made to the PCSSS over its
development have improved performance. A parametric design study was also conducted to investigate the effects
of continuity design on the economy of the PCSSS. It was recommended that the PCSSS be designed as simply
supported rather than as a continuous system.
Project Details
- Project number: 2010017
- Start date: 07/2009
- Project status: Completed
- Research area: Infrastructure
- Topics:
Bridges and culverts