PFI: Whatever Happened to Long Term Bridge Design?

这一创新伙伴关系(PFI)项目将解决当今美国高速公路系统基础设施老化的严重问题和存在结构缺陷的桥梁的可能性。这一问题的拟议解决方案包括改变桥梁设计协议，包括基线有限元建模、基于传感器的连续监测和测试，以及对收集的数据进行智能后处理以确定桥梁的结构健康状况。1956年的州际公路计划将美国的公路系统扩大到50多万座桥梁，但在最初的设计和建设工作中没有包括监测或状况评估。这项建议的重点是一个状态评估工具，它集成了基线有限元模型和参数估计以进行模型更新。基线模型将包括设计方法和方法的文件，旨在促进在桥梁的整个生命周期中使用这些基线信息，以监测状况和结构健康。因此，该项目将制定一个过程，以考虑未来检查、腐蚀和重建等长期要求如何以有意义的方式影响桥梁的结构状况。如果研究成功，将适用于美国和其他国家的大部分国家基础设施。成功项目的好处将通过提高安全性以及改善桥梁设计、制造和维护的经济性来实现。合作伙伴包括塔夫茨大学(牵头机构)、新汉普郡大学、新汉普郡交通部、Fay，Spofford&Amp；Thorndike工程师公司、Geocomp公司(风险仪器咨询公司)、Bridge Diagnostics公司和美国交通部、联邦公路管理局。

This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project will address the serious problem of aging of the highway system infrastructure and the possibility of structurally deficient bridges in the United States today. The proposed solution to this problem involves a shift in the bridge design protocol to include baseline finite element modeling, continuous sensor-based monitoring and testing, and the intellectual post-processing of collected data to determine the structural health of bridges. The 1956 Interstate Highway Program expanded the U.S. highway system to over 500,000 bridges, but there was no monitoring or condition assessment included in the initial design and building effort. This proposal focuses on a condition assessment tool that integrates baseline finite element models and parameter estimation for model updating. The baseline model will include documentation of design approaches and methodology and is intended to facilitate the use of that baseline information over the bridge's life cycle to monitor condition and structural health. Thus the project would develop a process to consider how the, long term requirements such as future inspection, corrosion, and reconstruction impact the structural condition of the bridge in a meaningful way.The research, if successful, will be applicable to a significant fraction of the national infrastructure in the US and beyond. The benefits from a successful project would be realized through improvements in safety, as well as improvements in the economics of bridge design, fabrication, and maintenance.Partners include Tufts University (lead institution); University of New Hampshire; State of New Hampshire Department of Transportation; Fay, Spofford, & Thorndike Engineers; Geocomp Corporation (consultants on instrumentation for risk); Bridge Diagnostics, Inc.; and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration.