Contours of saturated and unsaturated overhanging slopes at limiting equilibrium condition

Overhangs are frequently observed in riverbanks, coastal headlands, and rock formations. The geometry of an overhang is an input into most slope stability analyses and is often idealised or back-calculated from empirical data. This study investigates the geometries of overhang slopes, which exist while in limiting conditions satisfying static equilibrium with soil strength governed by the Mohr-Coulomb failure criterion. The overhanging contour is formulated as the unknown in a boundary value problem and solved for using the slip line theory. Analyses consider nonhomogeneous soils, where cohesion and, if unsaturated, the contribution of suction to the effective stress vary linearly with depth. The solutions are presented in general dimensionless charts. Applications of the charts are illustrated via examples. It has been observed that soil with varying amounts of friction and cohesion could develop overhanging arches of different sizes and shapes. This study shows that the curvature of an overhang becomes more pronounced for small values of φ′ . It is also demonstrated that changing the contribution of suction to the effective stress has a direct impact on the size of an unsaturated soil overhang. Overhanging slope shapes observed in reality may be different from the idealised subset studied in this paper since real slopes are not necessarily at impending failure. The real shapes may be influenced by various physical processes such as weathering, stress variations caused by cycles of wetting-drying. Even so, the results presented in the paper indicated how key soil properties influence slope shapes, albeit it while in limiting conditions.     

由结构面和岩桥组成的剪切面强度特性研究

通过直剪模型试验和非线性有限元分析,研究了由结构面和岩桥组成的剪切面在不同法向应力、不同岩桥面积及不同岩桥分布型式等条件下的综合抗剪强度,较客观地评价了岩桥对剪切面抗剪强度指标的影响,初步探讨了岩桥的破坏机理。     

简支梁桥减震半主动控制算法研究

总结了6种半主动控制算法,采用黏滞阻尼器,对一座三跨简支梁桥进行了不同地震动输入下的半主动控制地震反应计算分析,比较分析了不同地震动输入和半主动控制算法对简支梁桥地震反应控制效果的影响。结果表明,半主动控制能有效地减小桥梁结构的大部分地震反应,同时可能会放大另外部分地震反应,这与地震动输入密切相关,不同地震动输入下的控制效果各不相同。所提六种半主动控制算法中,算法2、5、6对该简支梁桥地震反应的减震效果相对最好,这与各种算法的阻尼器耗能大小有关。     

环境温度对桥梁结构动力特性影响的试验研究

本文以两跨钢-混凝土连续组合梁模型和刚架拱桥的环境振动测试为基础,分析了环境温度变化对桥梁动力特性的影响。结果表明:环境温度变化会引起桥梁动力特性的显著变化,同时温度变化对结构动力特性的影响受到桥梁边界约束条件的很大影响,此类测试和分析对桥梁健康监测与损伤识别具有借鉴意义。     

飘浮体系斜拉桥纵向抗震计算的单塔模型

通过全桥模型计算结果与单塔模型计算结果的对比,讨论了集中质量在塔上锚固区处堆聚位置,定义了一个结构动力特性和结构地震反应的修正系数,提出了飘浮体系斜拉桥塔纵桥向地震反应计算的单塔模型。多个工程实例的分析结果表明,采用单塔模型的典型误差在15%左右,精度可以满足工程抗震设计的要求,使桥塔的抗震计算得到简化。     

Structural health monitoring of long-span suspension bridges using wavelet packet analysis

During the service life of civil engineering structures such as long-span bridges, local damage at key positions may continually accumulate, and may finally result in their sudden failure. One core issue of global vibration-based health monitoring methods is to seek some damage indices that are sensitive to structural damage. This paper proposes an online structural health monitoring method for long-span suspension bridges using wavelet packet transform (WPT). The WPT- based method is based on the energy variations of structural ambient vibration responses decomposed using wavelet packet analysis. The main feature of this method is that the proposed wavelet packet energy spectrum (WPES) has the ability to detect structural damage from ambient vibration tests of a long-span suspension bridge. As an example application, the WPES-based health monitoring system is used on the Runyang Suspension Bridge under daily environmental conditions. The analysis reveals that changes in environmental temperature have a long-term influence on the WPES, while the effect of traffic loadings on the measured WPES of the bridge presents instantaneous changes because of the nonstationary properties of the loadings. The condition indication indices VD reflect the influences of environmental temperature on the dynamic properties of the Runyang Suspension Bridge. The field tests demonstrate that the proposed WPES-based condition indication index VD is a good candidate index for health monitoring of long-span suspension bridges under ambient excitations.     

Engineering characteristics of near-fault vertical ground motions and their effect on the seismic response of bridges

A wide variety of near-fault strong ground motion records were collected from various tectonic environments worldwide and were used to study the peak value ratio and response spectrum ratio of the vertical to horizontal component of ground motion, focusing on the effect of earthquake magnitude, site conditions, pulse duration, and statistical component. The results show that both the peak value ratio and response spectrum ratio are larger than the 2/3 value prescribed in existing seismic codes, and the relationship between the vertical and horizontal ground motions is comparatively intricate. In addition, the effect of the near-fault ground motions on bridge performance is analyzed, considering both the material nonlinear characteristics and the P~? effect.     

河源断裂与新丰江大桥桥址的选择

按粤赣公路设计方案,拟建的新丰江大桥将从河源断裂附近通过,桥址是选在断层上盘抑或是下盘,关系到大桥的稳定性。经考证,桥址应选在下盘硅化岩上,其理由为：(1)按规范要求,桥址在断裂附近通过时,应在同一侧,最好是下盘;(2)河源断裂虽然是一条活动断裂,但断裂面已经东移至红层与硅化岩交界处,硅化岩是中生代断裂活动标志,到新生代与砂岩花岗岩都已成为断裂下盘,已不是断裂活动标志;(3)硅化岩是坚硬而强度大的岩石。     

Field test of an intelligent stiffener for bridges at the I-35 Walnut Creek bridge

The addition of controllable hardware to structures to mitigate vibration that results from dynamic loads is an emerging area of technological development. The paper describes the results of a research project that was conducted to test a relatively new approach to structural control: an adjustable semi-active hydraulic actuation system that was attached to an in service interstate bridge. The system, which is powered by a 12-volt automative battery, has been tested over a 2- year period. Data indicates that the system reduces truck induced peak stresses by over 50 per cent, and calculations, per NCHRP 299, indicate that the safe life of the structure is increased by approximately 50 yr. The installed cost of the system represents less than 10 per cent of the cost to replace the bridge. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Approximate computer analysis of pile groups subjected to loads and ground movements

This paper describes the development of an approximate approach for the analysis and design of piles subjected to axial and lateral loading and also to vertical and horizontal ground movements. The analysis involves a number of simplifications in order to make it feasible to implement. For example, it considers the behaviour of a ‘representative’ pile in a group to characterize the behaviour of all piles in the group, and adopts approximations to derive free-field interaction factors from the conventional interaction factors for direct loading. The analysis has been implemented via a computer program called EMbankment PIle Group (EMPIG) and has the ability to incorporate the following features:

• 1. single piles or pile groups,
• 2. applied vertical, lateral and moment loading on the pile cap,
• 3. the effects of axial and lateral soil movements caused by embankment construction,
• 4. a layered soil profile,
• 5. non-linear axial and lateral response of the piles.

Comparisons between solutions from EMPIG and other independent programs suggest that it is capable of providing results of adequate accuracy for practical design purposes. The analysis has been used to investigate the effects of pile rake on a typical bridge abutment group. The presence of raked piles can have a detrimental effect on group behaviour, especially in the presence of ground movements. Large lateral deflections can be generated and axial forces and moments in the piles are increased. Comparisons are also made with the results of centrifuge model tests on abutment pile groups. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.