POPSICLE BRIDGES

How Bridges Are Engineered To Withstand

Weight, While Being Durable,
And In Some Cases Aesthetically Pleasing

Institute Of Electrical And Electronics Engineers, Phoenix Section

ARIZONA SCIENCE LAB

Helping Students Transfer What Is Learned In The Classroom To The World Beyond

Copyright Notice
This presentation includes material copied from these web sites:
HowStuffWorks How Bridges Work,
http://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/civil/bridge.htm
PBS Building Big The Labs,
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/lab/index.html
PBS Building Big Bridge Basics, http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/buildingbig/bridge/basics.html
Oracle Education Foundation, ThinkQuest, http://library.thinkquest.org/J002223/types/types.html
YouTube Tacoma Bridge,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mclp9QmCGs
Bridge Types Beam Structure Bridges,
http://www.pennridge.org/works/brbeam.html
National Grid for Learning The Bridges Project: Bridge Types,
http://www.bardaglea.org.uk/bridges/bridge-types/bridge-types-intro.html
Bridge Basics A Spotter's Guide to Bridge Design,
http://www.pghbridges.com/basics.htm

This presentation may only be used free of charge and only for
educational purposes, and may not be sold or otherwise used
for commercial purposes

What Is A Bridge?

A bridge is a structure built to span a valley, road, body

of water, or other physical obstacle, for the purpose of
providing passage over the obstacle
There are more than half a million bridges in the
United States
But do you know how they work?
Or why some bridges are curved while others are
straight?
Engineers must consider many things -- like the
distance to be spanned and the types of materials
available -- before determining the size, shape, and
overall look of a bridge
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What Is The Problem In Building A Bridge?

The bridge will only be supported at each end
where it sits on the surrounding terrain
There will not be any support in the middle of
the bridge unless we build a vertical pillar there,
and that may not be possible
So the weight of the people, cars, trains, etc. on the
middle of the bridge has to be supported by the
two ends where the bridge sits on the surrounding
terrain
Somehow the weight in the middle of the bridge
has to be transferred to the two ends
How can this be accomplished?
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What Is A Force?

In physics, a force is any external agent that

causes a change in the motion of a free body,
or that causes stress in a fixed body

Or
In Simpler Terms . . .
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What Is A Force?

It can also be described as a push or pull that

can cause an object with mass to change its
speed or direction ( to accelerate ) or which can
cause a flexible object to deform.

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Compression, Tension & Shear Forces

Compression = squeezing
Tension = stretching
Shear = sliding
Torsion = twisting
All materials are stronger in compression and
tension and shear than in twisting (torsion) or
bending
The various bridge structure designs endeavor to
maximize compression, tension and shear forces
while minimizing torsion and bending forces
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Stress And Strain

Stress is a measurement of the strength of a material
Strain is a measure of the change in the shape of the
object that is undergoing stress
There are three main types of stress:
If we stretch or compress an object, we are
subjecting it to a tensile stress
If an object is subjected to a force along an entire
surface, changing its volume, then it is said to be
experiencing a bulk stress
Finally, if the force is acting tangentially to the
surface, causing it to twist, then we are subjecting it
to a shear stress
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Stress And Strain (contd)

Consider a bar of cross sectional area A being subjected to equal
and opposite forces F pulling at the ends
If this were a rope, we would say that it is experiencing a
tension force
Taking this concept over, we say that the bar is under tension,
and is experiencing a stress that we define to be the ratio of the
force to the cross sectional area
Stress = F/A
This stress is called the tensile stress because every part of the
object is subjected to a tension
The SI unit of stress is the Newton per square meter, which is
called the Pascal
1 Pascal = 1 Pa = 1 N/m2
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Stress And Strain (contd)

The fractional amount that an object stretches when it is
subjected to a tensile stress is called the tensile strain
Mathematically, we write this as

where l0 is the original unstressed length of the bar

Robert Hooke found that, when the forces are not too large, the
amount of strain experience by an object was directly
proportional to the stress
Define the elastic modulus to be

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Beam Bridge
The beam bridge consists of a
horizontal beam supported at each
end by piers in the banks
A log bridge thrown across a
stream or river is the oldest and
simplest beam bridge
The weight of the beam pushes
straight down on the piers / banks
The farther apart its piers / banks,
the weaker the beam becomes
This is why beam bridges rarely
span more than 76 meters / 250
feet
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Beam Bridge: Forces

When something pushes down on
the beam, the beam bends
Its top edge is pushed together
(compression), and its bottom
edge is pulled apart (tension)
So any weight sitting on the
center of the beam will be
transferred to the two ends of the
beam sitting on the river banks
(for example)
If the supported weight becomes
very large a point will be reached
when the beam bends and breaks
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LOG
W/2

RIVER BED

W/2

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Why Are
Support
Beams Always
Oriented With
The Depth
Greater Than
The
Thickness?
Because of the
force moments in
the beam
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Whats A Moment?
DEFINITION
A Force Acting Over a Distance

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Whats A Moment?
Balance happens when the moments
are EQUAL

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Where Do You Find Moments?

Some Places Where Moments are at work:
o Boats
o See Saw
o Swing Set
o Lever
o Airplanes
o You and Me
Beams in this Building
Bridges

Almost anywhere a force is at work!

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Calculating A Moment
MOMENT = FORCE X DISTANCE
Force2
Force1

distance1

Moment2 = ?

Moment1 = Force1 x distance1

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distance2

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Equal Forces
MOMENT = FORCE X DISTANCE

60 kg*

60 kg*

1 meter

1 meter

What are the moments?

*

The actual FORCE due to gravity is 600 Newtons

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Equal Moments
MOMENT = FORCE X DISTANCE

60 kg*

30 kg*

1 meter

2 meters

What are the moments?

*

The actual FORCES due to gravity are 600 Newtons and 300 Newtons

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Unequal Moments

60 kg*

30 kg*

1 meter

1 meter

WhatIthappens
Rotates!now?
*

The actual FORCES due to gravity are 600 Newtons and 300 Newtons

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Flexible Body

Force = 600 Nt

1 meter

Force = 300 Nt

2 meters

60 kg

30 kg

What are the moments?

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The Compression & Tension Forces Exert

A Moment About The Beam Center Point
LOAD ON BEAM ACTING
VERTICALLY DOWNWARDS
CENTRAL AXIS FOR
COMPRESSION FORCE
MOMENT (= NEUTRAL
AXIS)

BEAM
TENSION FORCE
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THE COMPRESSION / TENSION

MOMENT IS LARGE FOR A THICK
BEAM AND SMALL FOR A THIN
BEAM
FOR THE SAME VERTICAL
LOAD, THE COMPRESSION AND
TENSION FORCES ARE THE
SAME FOR A THICK OR THIN
BEAM
A RIGID BEAM NEEDS A LARGE
MOMENT
HENCE WHY THE BEAM DEPTH
IS SO IMPORTANT!
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Making The Beam Stronger

A single beam spanning any distance
experiences compression and tension
The very top of the beam experiences
the most compression, and the very
bottom of the beam experiences the
most tension
The middle of the beam experiences
very little compression or tension
If the beam were designed so that
there was more material on the top
and bottom, and less in the middle, it
would be better able to handle the
forces of compression and tension
For this reason, I-beams are more
rigid than simple rectangular beams
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Wooden I-beams (Engineered Wood Beams) Are

Now Used In House Construction

Engineered wood I-beam is a structural

component of top and bottom flanges,
which could be solid or laminated wood,
united with a plywood or oriented strand
board web of various depths separating
them
Engineered wood I-beams are primarily
used for floor systems but can also be
found in some roof applications

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The Shape Of A Structure Affects How Strong It Is

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Triangulation
As you saw, a triangle is a very strong
structural form
The triangle is used in structural
designs to reinforce and support
weight
All structures on this page rely on
the strength of the triangle

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Triangles Can Be Assembled Into A Beam Structure

This wooden beam has been made from lengths of 2x4 stud
joined together in triangular shapes
Because of the triangles, the beam is very strong
A truss system takes the concept of the I-beam one step
further
The center of the beam is made up of the diagonal
members of the truss, while the top and bottom of the
truss represent the top and bottom of the beam
Looking at a truss in this way, we can see that the top and
bottom of the beam contain more material than its center
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These Structures Are Known As Trusses

The truss is structure made up from triangular
designs and used for support to hold up more
weight and span more distance
A truss structure is much lighter than a
corresponding solid beam of the same strength
For this reason they are used both in house
construction and bridge construction
A truss is always under compression and tension
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House Construction Uses The Strength Of

Triangles To Make Strong, Light Roof Supports
Over Wide Spans From 2x4 Wooden Studs

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Wooden Roof Trusses For Houses Come In

A Variety Of Shapes

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Truss Bridge
The truss bridge consists of
an assembly of triangles
A truss bridge is basically a
fancy beam bridge
The triangular supports span
across the top sides of the
bridge, and sometimes
trusses are part of the under
structure of a truss bridge
There are also trusses across
the bridge at top and bottom
to give it side-to-side
torsional (twisting) strength!
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There Are A Large Number Of Truss

Designs Used For Bridges

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Lets Build A Bridge!

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Lets Build A Truss Bridge!

You will be in teams of two
You will be given
200 Popsicle sticks
A hot glue gun
Your challenge is to design and build a truss structure bridge that will
Span a gap of 61 cms / 24 inches between two work tables
Support a weight of 23 kg / 50 pounds at the center point of the
bridge
(a really well designed bridge should also support one of your
colleagues!)
Use no more than 200 popsicle sticks
The load weight will be placed on the upper surface of your bridge so
do not worry about building road surfaces through the bridge!
Dont forget to include side-to-side torsional (twisting) strength!
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OTHER TYPES OF BRIDGES

There are other ways to design a bridge
They all involve the same compression, tension
and shear forces as the beam and truss bridges
we have been discussing
But these other designs accommodate those
forces in different ways from the beam and truss
and from each other
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Arch Bridge
The arch bridge has great natural
strength
Thousands of years ago, Romans
built arches out of stone
Today, most arch bridges are made
of steel or concrete, and they can
span up to 800 feet
Arches can also be set above the
deck as on the Sydney harbor bridge
in Australia
This allows much more space
beneath for ships to pass under
In this case the arch is combined
with the truss structure

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Arch Bridge: Forces

The design of the arch, the semicircle,
naturally diverts the weight from the
bridge deck to the abutments
Arch bridges are always under
compression
The force of compression is pushed
outward along the curve of the arch
toward the abutments
The shape of the arch itself is all that is
needed to effectively dissipate
the weight from the center of the deck
to the abutments
As with the beam bridge, the limits of
size will eventually overtake the
natural strength of the arch
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Starrucca
Viaduct

A stone arch bridge that

spans Starrucca
Creek near Lanesboro,
Pennsylvania
At the time of its
construction, the bridge
was thought to be the most
expensive railway bridge in
the world, at a cost of
$320,000 (equal to
$8,595,692 today)
It was the largest stone rail
viaduct in the mid-19th
century.
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Red River Gorge Bridge, Taos, New

Mexico

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Hoover Dam Bridge

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Conversion Of The Roman Arch To The

Gothic Arch
The medieval stone masons belonged to guilds
These were professional organizations like the IEEE!
They did not know math and physics but they were engineers
They observed, experimented and applied what they learnt to
the design of church structures
Thus they realized by trial and error that the Roman arch would
be stronger if it was pointed instead of curved
The sides of the arch would not bow outwards to the same
extent as the Roman arch
This new design was the Gothic arch
It allowed churches to be built with vaulting, wide ceiling
spans and reduced the number of supporting pillars
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Roman Arch
Church
The facade of Notre Dame
du Puy, le Puy en Velay,
France
It has a more complex
arrangement of diversified
arches:
Doors of varying widths
Blind arcading,
windows and open
arcades
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Gothic Arch Church (Notre Dame de

Paris)

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Interior Of Notre Dame de Paris: Gothic

Vaulted Ceiling

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Flying Buttresses: Transfer The Thrust Of The Roof

On The Arch Outwards And Down To A Pier

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Suspension Bridge
The suspension bridge can span 610
to 2134 meters / 2,000 to 7,000 feet,
much farther than any other type of
bridge!
A suspension bridge is one
where cables (or ropes or chains)
are strung across the river (or
whatever the obstacle happens to
be) and the deck is suspended from
these cables
Modern suspension bridges have
two tall towers through which the
cables are strung
Thus, the towers are supporting the
majority of the roadway's weight
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Suspension Bridge: Forces

The force of compression pushes down on the suspension bridge's
deck, but because it is a suspended roadway, the cables transfer the
compression to the towers, which dissipate the compression directly
into the earth where they are firmly entrenched
The supporting cables, running between the two anchorages, are the
lucky recipients of the tension forces
The cables are literally stretched from the weight of the bridge and its
traffic as they run from anchorage to anchorage

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Suspension Bridge: Forces (contd)

The anchorages are also under tension, but since they, like the
towers, are held firmly to the earth, the tension they experience
is dissipated
Almost all suspension bridges have, in addition to the cables, a
supporting truss system beneath the bridge deck (a deck truss)
This helps to stiffen the deck and reduce the tendency of the
roadway to sway and ripple

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Cable-Stayed Bridge
The cable-stayed bridge is a variant of
the suspension bridge
Like the suspension bridge, it
supports the roadway with massive
steel cables, but in a different way
The cables run directly from the
roadway up to a tower, forming a
unique "A" shape
Cable-stayed bridges, like the
Sunshine Skyway in Florida, require
less cable and can be built much
faster than suspension bridges
Cable-stayed bridges are becoming
the most popular bridges for mediumlength spans (between 152 and 914
meters / 500 and 3,000 feet).
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The Millau Viaduct Is Part Of The New E11

Expressway Connecting Paris And Barcelona
It is a cable-stayed
bridge
It features the highest
bridge piers ever
constructed
The tallest is 240
meters / 787 feet high
The overall height is
an impressive 336
meters / 1102 feet,
making this the
highest bridge in the
world
It's taller than the
Eiffel Tower!
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The Millau Viaduct

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Reinforced Concrete: Rebars Of Sagrada

Familias Roof In Construction (2009)

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Additional Bridge Forces: Torsion

There are dozens of forces other than compression, tension and shear that
also must be taken into consideration when designing a bridge
These forces are usually specific to a particular location or bridge design
Torsion, which is a rotational or twisting force, is one which has been
effectively eliminated in all but the largest suspension bridges
The natural shape of the arch and the additional truss structure of the
beam bridge have eliminated the destructive effects of torsion on these
bridges
Suspension bridges, however, because of the very fact that they are
suspended (hanging from a pair of cables), are somewhat more susceptible
to torsion, especially in high winds
All suspension bridges have deck-stiffening trusses which, as in the case of
beam bridges, effectively eliminate the effects of torsion; but in
suspension bridges of extreme length, the deck truss alone is not enough
Wind-tunnel tests are generally conducted on models to determine the
bridge's resistance to torsional movements
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Additional Bridge Forces: Resonance

Resonance (a vibration in something caused by an external force that is in harmony

with the natural vibration of the original thing) is a force which, unchecked, can be fatal
to a bridge
Resonant vibrations will travel through a bridge in the form of waves
A very famous example of resonance waves destroying a bridge is the Tacoma Narrows
bridge, which fell apart in 1940 in a 40-mph / 64-kph wind
Close examination of the situation suggested that the bridge's deck-stiffening truss
was insufficient for the span, but that alone was not the cause of the bridge's
demise
The wind that day was at just the right speed, and hitting the bridge at just the
right angle, to start it vibrating
Continued winds increased the vibrations until the waves grew so large and violent
that they broke the bridge apart
When an army marches across a bridge, the soldiers are often told to "break step
This is to avoid the possibility that their rhythmic marching will start resonating
throughout the bridge
An army that is large enough and marching at the right cadence could start a bridge
swaying and undulating until it broke apart
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VIDEO: Tacoma Narrows

Suspension Bridge Failure

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