Principal Investigator(s):
Lauren Linderman, Associate Professor, Civil, Environmental and Geo-Engineering
Project summary:
Downscaled climate projections have traditionally been leveraged in the agriculture and water
sectors, but not in the structural engineering community. These climate change scenarios can
have numerous adverse effects on our bridge infrastructure, including thermal loads on
superstructure and expansion joints, degradation of components, and pier scour events. The goal
of this project is to characterize the impact of climate change on thermally induced loads in
Minnesota bridges. Expected temperatures and solar radiation levels will be determined from
high-resolution regional climate models. These will be applied to FE models of a concrete boxgirder
cross-section to develop thermal gradients for Minnesota that consider anticipated climate
projections. To determine corresponding stresses, the thermal gradients will be applied to a
model of the I-35W St. Anthony Falla??s Bridge and compared to the response from the current
design and measured temperature gradients. These stresses, when considered in a serviceability
and strength context, provide insight on the vulnerability of our bridge infrastructure to climate
change induced demands. Ultimately, these findings will motivate the use of design and
adaptation strategies informed by climate projection data.