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CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering
Fall 2014
CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 1

Kent A. Harries Ph.D, FACI, P.Eng.
office: BEH 218B
email: kharries@pitt.edu
Ph.D. (1995) McGill University, Montral, Canada
Elected Fellow of ACI and Council of IIFC
Professional Engineer in Ontario, Canada Old Bridge at Invermoriston, Scotland
Over 200 published research papers

Over $4.0 million in research grants as PI ($2.0M) or CoPI ($2.0M)
Editor of Journal of Building and Construction Materials (Elsevier); Editor of
FRP International; Associate Editor of ASCE Journal of Bridge Engineering
Committees: ACI 440, 335, 215, 439, 408; ASCE CCC, FCAPS; IBC; IIFC; etc.
Graduated: 30 MSCE; 8 PhD (presently advising 2 PhD and 4 MSCE)

Objective
This course is intended to serve as an introduction and overview of bridge
engineering practice with an emphasis on structural engineering.
Evaluation is weighted toward a term paper, allowing students to pursue a

topic of particular interest in greater depth.
This course complements the needs of CEEs online CM PMS program. It

also serves as a technical elective for the SEM program.

References
AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications (2010)
not purchase this unless you really want to
Sections 3 and 6 of AASHTO LRFD 6th edition

https://bookstore.transportation.org/item_details.aspx?ID=2023
Fu, Bridge Design and Evaluation, 2013
Course notes (slides) and other supplemental material

will be provided on CourseWeb

Evaluation
Assignments 45%
Term Paper 50%
Peer Review 5%
Term Paper deliverables:

Topic must be approved by week 4 (09.17)
Submit paper week 13 (11.19) no exceptions
Receive papers for review (3 or 4) Thanksgiving break
Reviews due week 15 (12.03) no exceptions
Term Paper Format: The format will follow that required for ASCE STRUCTURES
congress (see handout)
All papers will be checked using Ithenticate. ANY evidence of plagiarism will result in a
grade of zero for the offending paper. Plagiarism in the term paper will therefore result
in failure of the course.
Plagiarism
to steal and pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one's own
to use (another's production) without crediting the source
to commit literary theft
to present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing
source.
Merriam Webster Online Dictionary
In other words, plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone

else's work and lying about it afterward.
Cut and paste from other sources is obvious plagiarism. Use of unattributed
text or images is also plagiarism when submitted or put forth as ones own
work.
Plagiarism is a serious breach of academic integrity and will not be tolerated.

Plagiarism
University of Pittsburgh Code of Academic Integrity
A student has an obligation to exhibit honesty and to respect the ethical
standards of the profession in carrying out his or her academic assignments.
Without limiting the application of this principle, a student may be found to
have violated this obligation if he or she:
7. Practices any form of deceit in an academic evaluation proceeding.
10. Presents as one's own, for academic evaluation, the ideas,
representations, or words of another person or persons without customary
and proper acknowledgment of sources.
11. Submits the work of another person in a manner which represents the
work to be one's own.

Plagiarism
Clear evidence of plagiarism will result in a grade of zero for that
assignment. A note is also placed in the students academic record.
A second instance and/or failing to acknowledge blatant plagiarism will
result in a failing grade for the course and reporting to the Associate
Dean for Student Affairs.
In the past, cases of plagiarism typically result in the student being asked
to resign from the University.
Plagiarism is a disservice to ones self you are here to learn

Plagiarism shows disrespect to ones peers and ones professor
I believe that I have made myself perfectly clear.

Wikipedia
Wikipedia is NOT a valid source of technical information and should
never be used as a reference in a technical work.
Wikipedia may be a useful to begin research, to obtain background
material or to find appropriate citations.
Additionally, there are rules at the bottom of each Wikipedia page

CourseWeb
All course material will be disseminated using the PITT CourseWeb portal:
https://courseweb.pitt.edu
All assignments and papers are to be submitted using the PITT CourseWeb
portal. Instructions are provided for file format.
Be sure to name your files with your last names!

Course Material
Slides and other course material are provided for the purposes of CEE
2347 only.
Students are cautioned that some materials may contain copyrighted

material used under fair-use provisions that may be not be used in any
manner not directly connected to CEE 2347. Dr. Harries reserves all
copyright to all course material.
Disseminating course material without expressed consent of Dr. Harries is

not permitted under any circumstances. Any evidence of unauthorised
dissemination will be turned over to University General Council
All opinions expressed (and there will be many) are those of Dr. Harries
and do not necessarily reflect those of any cited sources.
Kent A. Harries

History of Bridge Design

History
Prehistory
Natural bridges (tree trunks, stone clapper bridges)
Similar man-made bridges
Clapper Bridge at
Dartmeet, Devon
Clapper Bridge
at Lower
Slaughter in the
Cotswolds Clapper Bridge at Postbridge, Dartmoor

History
Etruscans (1200 BCE 550 BCE) and Romans (550 BCE forward)
Etruscans were first civilization to develop the Arch
Romans were first civilization to develop a material recognizable as Concrete
Roman bridge at
Senoueix, France
Roman Bridge in Aleppo, Syria
Etruscan Arch Bridge: Ponte Di Badia Vulci, Italy

History
China
The Zhaozhou Bridge is the world's oldest open-spandrel stone segmental
arch bridge. Constructed in the years 595-605 (Sui Dynasty (581618)), the
bridge is about 50 m long with a central span of 37.37 m. It stands 7.3 m tall
and has a width of 9 m.
The arch covers a circular
segment less than half of a
semicircle (84) with a radius of
27.27 m, has a rise-to-span ratio
of 0.197. (smaller than 0.5 for a
semicircular arch or 0.207 of a
quarter circle.)
The arch length to span ratio is
1.1, less than the 1.57 ratio of a
semicircle arch, thus the saving
in material is about 40%
History
Renaissance (14th 17th centuries)
The Renaissance saw the formalization
of, and great advances in, the fields of:
Mathematics
Strength and Behavior of Materials
Metals and Metallurgy
CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering Galileo, Two New Sciences, 1638

16
History
Coalbrookdale (1779)
The Coalbrookdale bridge, spanning
30 m over the Severn river is the
worlds first cast iron bridge.

History
Menai Straight (1826)
Britannia Tubular Bridge
was constructed of
wrought iron
Today, a two level steel truss

arch bridge, constructed in
1972, carries the A55 across the
Menai Straight using the 1826
stone piers
History
Truss Bridges (19th century)
The science (art) of the mechanics of design came of age in the later 19th
century. Numerous truss geometries were conceived

History
Truss Bridges (19th century)
The science (art) of the mechanics of design came of age in the later 19th
century. Numerous truss geometries were conceived
Smithfield Street Bridge, Pittsburgh (1881)

Gustav Lindenthal
Forth Rail Bridge, Edinburgh (1890)

Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker
History
High Strength Steel Cables (mid 19th century)
Wire rope was invented by the German mining engineer Wilhelm Albert in
the early 1830s.
John Roebling developed the suspension bridge form using this new material.
Cables on the Brooklyn Bridge (1883) tested out at 160 ksi.
Brooklyn Bridge (1883)

Roebling Bridge, Cincinnati (1866)
History
High Strength Steel Cables Prestressed
Concrete (1920s)
Eugene Freyssinet developed techniques for
linear prestressing using high strength and
high ductility steels.
Plougastel Bridge (1930)
Pont de Luzancy (1946)

History
Late 20th century
Enhanced computational techniques (FEM) and
new materials (HSC, HSS, FRP) have led to:
An explosion in the forms a bridge may take,
Hulme Arch Bridge,
although all are still variations on established Manchester (1997)
themes
Alamillo Bridge, Seville (1992)
Merchants Bridge,
South Quay Footbridge, London (1997) Manchester (1995)
Trinity Bridge, Salford (1995)
History
Late 20th century
Increasingly longer bridge spans
Suspension Bridges Akashi-Kaiko Bridge
1 Akashi-Kaiko Japan 1991 m 1998

2 Xihoumen China 1650 m 2009
3 East Great Belt Denmark 1624 m 1998
Xihoumen Bridge
4 Gwangyang Korea 1545 m 2012
5 Runyang South China 1418 m 2013
6 Nanjing 4 China 1414 m 2013
7 Humber UK 1410 m 1981
11 Verrazano Narrows USA (NY) 1298 m 1964
Great Belt
12 Golden Gate USA (CA) 1280 m 1937 East Bridge
History
Late 20th century
Russky Island Bridge across Eastern
Cable Stayed Bridges Bosporus near Vladivostok
1 Russky Russia 1104 m 2012

2 Sutong China 1088 m 2008
3 Stonecutters Hong Kong 1018 m 2009
4 Edong China 926 m 2009 Ravenel Bridge, Charleston SC
5 Tatara Japan 890 m 1999

6 Pont de Normandie France 856 m 1995
34 Arthur Ravenel USA (SC) 471 m 2005
36 Alex Fraser Canada 465 m 1986
Alex Fraser Bridge, Vancouver BC

History
Late 20th century Chaotianmen Bridge
Steel Arch Bridges
Sydney Harbour Bridge
1 Chaotianmen China 552 m 2009
2 Lupu China 550 m 2003
3 New River Gorge USA (WV) 518 m 1977
4 Bayonne USA (NY) 504 m 1931
5 Sydney Harbour Australia 503 m 1932
Pont de Quebec
Steel Truss Bridges
1 Pont de Quebec Canada 549 m 1917
2 Forth Rail Bridge Scotland 521 m 1890
4 Commodore Barry USA (PA) 501 m 1974
Forth Rail Bridge
History
Late 20th century Wanxian Bridge
Concrete Arch Bridges
1 Wanxian China 425 m 1997
2 Krk-1 (East span) Croatia 390 m 1980 Hoover Dam Bypass
3 Jiangjiehe China 330 m 1995
4 Hoover Dam bypass USA (NV) 323 m 2010
Prestressed Concrete Bridges
1 Shibanpo China 330 m 2006
2 Stolmasundet Norway 301 m 1998
3 Raftsundet Norway 298 m 1998
4 Sundoy Norway 298 m 2003 Shibanpo Bridge (1930)
History
Late 20th century
Ponte Costa e Silva
Steel Box and Plate Girder Bridges
1 Ponte Costa e Silva Brazil 300 m 1974
2 Neckartalbrcke-1 Germany 263 m 1978
3 Sava-1 Serbia 261 m 1956
4 Ponte de Vitoria-3 Brazil 260 m 1989 Zoobrucke, Cologne
5 Zoobrucke Germany 259 m 1966

6 Sava-2 Serbia 250 m 1970
7 Kaita Japan 250 m 1991
8 Namihaya Japan 250 m 1994
Kaita Bridge, Osaka

History
Late 20th century
Innovative bridge concepts 128 m Concrete Stressed Ribbon
Bridge, Redding CA (1990)
Stressed Ribbon Bridges
90 m Maldonado Road Bridge, Uruguay
3 x 38 m Kikko Bridge, Japan (1991)
148 m Yumetsuri Bashi Bridge, Japan (1996)

Great Bridge Engineers
Thomas Telford (1757-1834)
Bannockburn Bridge
Bewdley Bridge (1798)
Bonar Bridge (1802)
Bridgnorth Bridge (1810)
Bridge of Keig (1827)
Broomielaw Bridge (1816)
Buildwas Bridge (1796)
Eaton Hall Bridge Cantlop Bridge (1820)
Menai Suspension Bridge Chirk Aqueduct (1801)
Clachan Bridge (1792)
Pontcysyllte Aqueduct Conwy Suspension Bridge (1826)
Coundarbour Bridge (1797)
Craigellachie Bridge (1815)
Dean Bridge, Edinburgh (1831)
Dunkeld Bridge (1809)
Eaton Hall Bridge (1824)
Galton Bridge (1829)
Glen Loy Aqueduct (1806)
Harecastle Tunnel (1827)
Conwy Suspension Holt Fleet Bridge (1827)
Bridge A proposal for London Bridge
Longdon-on-Tern Aqueduct (1796)
Menai Suspension Bridge (1826)
Montford Bridge (1792)
Mythe Bridge (1826)
Over Bridge (1827)
Bannockburn circular Pontcysyllte Aqueduct (1805)
Longdon-on-Tern Potarch Bridge
arch road bridge Telford Bridge (1813)
Aqueduct Tongland Bridge (1808)
Craigellachie bridge Waterloo Bridge, Betws-y-Coed (1815)
Isambard Brunel (1806 1859)
Thames Tunnel
Great Western Railway (countless
bridges)
Notable Bridges:
Maidenhead raiway Bridge (1839)
Windsor Railway Bridge (1849)
Royal Albert Bridge (1854)
Clifton Suspension Bridge (1864)
Windsor Railway Bridge Hungerford Railway Bridge (1864)
Clifton Suspension Bridge;

longest bridge in world at time
of construction: 210 m
Hungerford Railway Bridge
Royal Albert Bridge

John A. Roebling (1806 1869)
Roebling Bridge,
Cincinnati Allegheny Aqueduct Bridge, Pittsburgh (1844 - demolished 1861)
Smithfield Street Bridge Pittsburgh (1846 - replaced 18811883)
Lackawaxen Aqueduct (1848)
Delaware Aqueduct (1849)
High Falls Aqueduct (1850)
Brooklyn Bridge Neversink (1850)
Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge (1854-1897)
Allegheny Bridge Pittsburgh (1859)
John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge (1866)
Brooklyn Bridge (1883)
Delaware Aqueduct
Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge

Robert Maillart (1872 1940)
108 Concrete Bridges, including:

Pont sue le Vegron (1894)
Stauffacher Bridge (1899)
Zuoz Bridge (1901)
Tavanasa Bridge (1906)
Grand Fey Viaduct (1925)
Valtschielbach Bridge (1925)
Salginatobel Bridge (1930)
Zuoz Bridge Schwandbach Bridge (1933)
Tss Footbridge (1933)
Schwandbach Bridge Vessy Bridge (1937)
Bahnhofbrucke, Olten (1941)
Salginatobel Bridge Vessv Bridge

Tung-Yen (T.Y.) Lin (1912 2003)
and Man Chung Tang (b1940)
T.Y. Lin has been involved in the design and construction of over 1000
bridges. He Was a faculty member at UC Berkeley and founded T.Y. Lin
International in 1954. In 1992 he founded Lin Tung Yen China.
Kwan Du Bridge, Taiwan (Lin)
Man Chung Tang is Chairman and Technical
Director of T.Y. Lin International. He has
designed over 100 major spans around the
world.
Lin and Tang, more than any modern

Engineers, have returned aesthetics to
bridge engineering.
San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (Tang)

Types of Bridges

Bridges
Statement of Structural Purpose: Carry prescribed load from A to B
satisfying objectives of design.
As Engineers, we use the sciences of Mechanics (statics and dynamics) and

Materials to achieve this goal, recognising the limitations of each.
There are only three fundamental actions (stresses): Tension, Compression

and Shear.
Additionally, we must satisfy (at the very least) Equilibrium and

Compatibility
Considering these limitations results in some fundamental structural forms

suitable for bridges.

Bridge Types
Bridge Form Load Path
Beam Moveable bridges 1Dimensional (beam only)
Arch Culverts 2Dimensional (beam-slab)
Suspension 3Dimensional (space
Cantilever Structural elements may frame; truss)
Cable Stayed be members or trusses
hybrids of these
Span Support Conditions 3 simple spans

Simple 3 continuous spans
Continuous
Partially continuous (continuous for live load)
Span Type anchor suspended

span
Suspended span
Cantilever cantilever
Anchor span

Beam Bridges
River Teign Clapper Bridge Ponte Costa e Silva

Beam Bridges
Orthotropic Deck
Slab-Stringer Bridge

Arch Bridges
New River Gorge Bridge
Roman bridge at
Senoueix, France Salginatobel Bridge

Rigid Frame Bridges (hybrid of beam and arch)
Ankang Bridge, China (1982)

Suspension Bridges
Golden Gate Bridge
Menai Suspension Bridge

Cantilever Bridges
Forth Rail Bridge

Cable Stayed Bridges
Sunshine Second
Skyway Forth Road
(1987) Bridge

Movable Bridges
Draw Bridge
Bascule Bridges
Lift Bridge
Horizontal Swing Bridge Cumberland Basin, Bristol
Hawthorn Bridge, Portland horizontal swing bridge
lift bridge 17th Street Causeway, Fort Lauderdale
double bascule bridges
Broadway Bridge, Portland

double bascule bridge
Cawdor
Castle
drawbridge

Culverts
and Fords

Design Process

Design Process
In design, the engineer must provide a balance between various structural
requirements. Too much emphasis on one at the expense of others will
generally result in an inadequate structure. Often to achieve a satisfactory
structure a design engineer must work as part of a team and deal with many
issues not normally associated with structural engineering.
Typically, structural design requirements may be categorized as follows:

1. functional requirements;
2. safety requirements;
3. serviceability requirements;
4. constructability requirements;
5. economic requirements; and,
6. aesthetic requirements.

Functional Requirements
Spatial configuration
Special serviceability requirements
Flexibility of use
Confederation Bridge (1997)

New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island
Crosses Northumberland Straight (12.9 km)
High current/high winds
Spring ice floe
60 m high navigation channel
Lobster fisheries
Toll ($42.50/car) not to exceed cost of ferry for 30 years
Year-round operation
Long span alignment issues
Shuttle service
Political (Trans-Canada Highway)

I-35W
Safety Requirements
Laval Qc (2006)
Strength
Stability
Human Safety
Silver Bridge (1967)
Lake View Drive

Washington PA
Tasman Bridge (1975)
(2005)
Serviceability Requirements
Vertical deflections
Lateral deflections
Vibration
Sensitivity of volume change
Sensitivity to support settlement
Durability
Millennium Bridge, London (2000)

Constructability Requirements
Ease of construction
Skills and equipment consistent with those readily available
Duration of construction
Quality of workmanship (KISS)
Inspectability
Kansas City Hyatt Regency

walkway collapse (1981)

Constructability Case Study: Kansas City Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse
2P 2P
nut to channel
transfers P nut to channel
transfers 2P
P P
As designed: As built:
Shear in double channel Shear in double channel
equal to weight of one equal to weight of two
walkway walkways

Economic Requirements
Initial cost
Life cycle cost
Louisville and
Southern Indiana
Bridges Authority
Ohio River
Bridges project

Aesthetic Requirements
Good engineering design is
aesthetically pleasing
Sensitivity to context Milau
Viaduct
Public involvement in (2004)
signature projects is
becoming more common
Visualisation tools
Architectural features
Bridge spanning Elbe River (Dresden)
floodplain may result in loss of UNESCO
Heritage Site status for area
Ornamental
pylons on
16th Street
Bridge,
Pittsburgh
Good engineering design is
aesthetically pleasing
Poor design, on the other hand
(I could not find a bridge this ugly!)

Fu Chapter 2.8 provides a brief discussion of bridge aesthetics.
Two most critical aspects with respect to structural design are
Slenderness (L/d) Span Length Proportioning

One can argue that more slender Euclidean geometry suggests dividing
structures are more graceful and thus a line using the golden ratio, 1.618:1
more aesthetically pleasing. is aesthetically most pleasing
Mechanics places practical limits on Thus a three span structure is
slenderness. aesthetic pleasing having span lengths
B&P Table 2.1: 1:1.618:1.
Reinforced concrete tee beam: L/d < 15
Figures 2.4 and 2.5 suggest aesthetics
Reinforced concrete box girder: L/d < 18 of multi-span shallow and deep valley
Prestressed concrete girders: L/d < 25 crossings.
Prestressed concrete slabs: L/d < 37
Odd number of spans is more
Composite steel I-girder: L/d < 31
pleasing.

Ergonomic Requirements
A bridge with a fantastic view is a distraction to drivers
Long straight spans require horizontal and/or vertical curves to break
monotony
Driver comfort there is a population that is scared of bridges (tunnels too)
Driver confusion

Limit States Design
Identify all ways in which a structural may fail to meet its intended
purpose. These are limit states.
Ultimate Limit State Serviceability Limit State

The structure should not endanger The use of a structure should not be
users under rare (although not impaired under normal (service)
especially unforseen) loading loading conditions
conditions Deflections
Loss of equilibrium Vibrations
Fracture Cracking
Progressive collapse Special Limit States
Plastic mechanism damage or failure associated with
Instability special/unique loading considerations
Fatigue Fire
Explosion
Limit States Design
Identify all ways in which a structural may fail to meet its intended
purpose. These are limit states.
Determine acceptable level of safety against each limit state
Consequences of failure (exceeding limit state)
Varies from minor inconvenience to death!
May be expressed as a cost ($ or lives, for instance)
Also affected by nature of failure is there likely to be warning?
The Koror-Babeldaob (KB) Bridge, in the Republic of
Palau, Micronesia, was completed in 1977. It collapsed
in September, 1996.
Poor initial design
Excessive creep causing 1.2 m sag (L/200)
Repair that addressed little and changed articulation
of bridge (statically determinate cantilevers to
indeterminate beam)
over-enthusiastic scrabbling of compression zone
during repair
Chris Burgoyne, University of Cambridge
Role of Failure in Bridge Design
Failure is a central idea in engineering. In fact, one definition of engineering
might be that it is the avoidance of failure. When a device, machine or
structure is designed by an engineer, every way in which it might credibly fail
must be anticipated to ensure that it is designed to function properly.
Unanticipated failures may be thought of as unplanned experiments. While

failures are also unwanted, of course, the surprise result of any failure is
clearly interesting, and it reveals a point of ignorance that engineers must
then seek to correct.
When failures do occur, engineers necessarily want to learn the causes.

Understanding of the reason for repeated failuresstructural or
otherwisethat jeopardize the satisfactory use and therefore the reputation
of a product typically leads to a redesigned product.
Reference Manual On Scientific Evidence 2nd edition (2000)

(Federal Judicial Manual)

Beginning with the Dee Bridge failure in 1847, roughly every 30 years there
has been a major bridge failureeach of a different type of bridgeand
each failure can be traced to the gradual transformation of a successful
bridge design. Among the explanations for this haunting pattern is that novel
types of bridges are designed by engineers who take care with the designs,
since they have few precedents, and the designs that are successful are copied
and in time come to be attempted in longer lengths, in more slender profiles,
and with increasing casualness by a younger generation of engineers that is
unaware of or does not remember the assumptions that went into the early
designs or the limitations of those designs. Such a pattern was being repeated
in the late twentieth century for cable-stayed and post-tensioned bridges,
and such bridges may well be expected to suffer a catastrophic failure early
in the new millennium.
Petroski, Design Paradigms: Case Histories of Error and Judgment in Engineering (1994)

Silby, Petroskis source material, is a bit more generous
In each case one can identify a situation where, in early examples of the
structural form, a certain factor was of secondary importance with regard to
stability of strength. With increasing scale, however, this factor became of
primary importance and led to failure. The accidents happen not because the
engineer neglected to provide sufficient strength as prescribed by the
accepted design approach, but because of the unwitting introduction of a
new type of behavior. As time passed during the period of development, the
bases of the design methods were forgotten and so were their limits of
validity. Following a period of successful construction, a designer, perhaps a
little complacent , simply extended the design method once too often.
Silby, The Prediction of Structural Failure PhD thesis, University of London (1977)

Bridge Type Probable Cause Year Interval
Dee (England) trussed girder torsional instability 1847
Tay (Scotland) truss unstable in wind 1879 32 years
Quebec (Canada) cantilever compressive buckling 1907 28 years
Tacoma Narrows (USA) suspension aerodynamic instability 1940 33 years
Miford Haven (Wales) box girder plate buckling 1970 30 years
???
Silby and Walker, Structural Accidents

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering and their Causes , Proc. ICE, (1977) 64
For catastrophic structural failure to occur, a minimum of three of the
following five factors must be present. Similarly, at least three of the
following five factors may be identified in every structural failure:
Design error I cannot recall the source of this wisdom but it

has proven prescient in all failure investigations
Construction error
I have been in involved in:
Material flaw
I-35W
Unanticipated overload Lake View Drive
Act of God Dalrymple Bay Coal Facility, Queensland Australia
Lowes Motor Speedway Pedestrian Bridge
Bell South Building, Columbia SC
Grain silo, Kingston Jamaica
countless small investigations

Bridge Failures in US, 1989-2000
1993 Mississippi and all failures 503
Missouri River floods hydraulic 266
collision 59
overload 44
deterioration 43
fire 16
construction 13
Wardhana and Hadiprono, Analysis of Recent Bridge
Failures in the United States , ASCE J. Performance of ice 10
Constructed Facilities. (2003)
earthquake 17
fatigue 5
design 3
soil 2
storm/hurricane 2
CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering

other 22 66
Case Study: I-35W
These slides include material from NTSB and FHWA reports on the collapse.
The in-class discussion may touch on privileged information.
The entire discussion represents only the opinions of Dr. Harries and not
necessarily those of any cited source material.
Students are reminded that these slides are only for use in CEE 2347 and must
not be disseminated elsewhere.

Case Study: I-35W
At 6:05 p.m. on Wednesday

August 1, 2007, cars sat in
evening rush hour traffic
atop the I-35W bridge in
Minneapolis. In a tragic and
unexpected turn of events,
the bridge collapsed and fell
into the Mississippi River.
Thirteen people died and
dozens were injured.
NTSB, March 7, 2008.

Case Study: I-35W
Collapse was remarkably rapid
(10 seconds), suggesting:
Stability failure
Fracture failure
Focus very quickly zeroed in

on four connections at U10 and
L11 (and mirror locations U10
and L11)

Case Study: I-35W

Case Study: I-35W
What is wrong with

this picture?
Holt and Hartmann, Adequacy of the U10 & L11 Gusset Plate
Designs for the Minnesota Bridge No. 9340 (I-35W over the
Mississippi River), Interim Report, January 11, 2008.
Case Study: I-35W
Recreation of
actual loads
NTSB Modeling Group

Study, Report 07-115,
November 8, 2007.

Case Study: I-35W
Reassembly of bridge in forensic investigation

Case Study: I-35W
THE failure (fracture of gusset plate)
NTSB Materials Laboratory

Factual Report, Report 07-
119, January 11, 2008.
Case Study: I-35W
Analysis of gusset
plate connections
Case Study: I-35W
Case Study: I-35W
Extensive NL finite element analysis

including stability analysis
NTSB Modeling Group
Report, March 7, 2008.

Case Study: I-35W
Holt and Hartmann, Adequacy of the U10 & L11 Gusset Plate NTSB, March 7, 2008.

Case Study: I-35W

Case Study: I-35W
So we know what happened?
How might it have happened?

Case Study: I-35W
Liberty Bridge
Immediate Impact:
Steel Deck Truss Bridges:

466 Nationwide
50 in CA Homestead Bridge
48 in PA (17 rated SD)
32 in NY
All Trusses:
12612 Nationwide Rankine Bridge
706 in PA (6th)
NTSB State-by-State
Bridge Counts, March
12, 2008.

Assignment 1
STUDENTS WILL SUBMIT ONLY ONE OF ASSIGNMENTS 1A OR 1B
Assignment 1A: Describe a bridge failure. Failure may be defined in any

manner and does not necessarily imply collapse. Construction failures are
acceptable (and encouraged). Write a brief description of the cause(s) and
issues involved. The paper MUST conclude with a section entitled Lessons
Learned. The paper should reference more than a single source and all
references must be appropriately cited. I would expect the submission to
fall between 4 and 10 pages. Students may not select I-35W for this
assignment.
This assignment requires some level of research. In addition to providing the

student with insight into a particular topic, the assignment addresses a)
research skills and may thereby introduce students to resources that they
were unaware of; b) the ability to communicate technical information in a
concise manner; c) the ability to distill disparate information into a cohesive
product
Assignment 1
STUDENTS WILL SUBMIT ONLY ONE OF ASSIGNMENTS 1A OR 1B
Assignment 1B: Describe a bridge form/type. Write a brief description of

the evolution of the form/type culminating in the current state-of-the-art.
Historic forms/types are acceptable and encouraged. If a historic bridge
form/type is selected, the state-of-the-art section should address current
issues in repair/rehabilitation/retrofit. The paper must include the
description of a representative example structure. The paper should
reference more than a single source and all references must be appropriately
cited. I would expect the submission to fall between 4 and 10 pages.
This assignment requires some level of research. In addition to providing the

student with insight into a particular topic, the assignment addresses a)
research skills and may thereby introduce students to resources that they were
unaware of; b) the ability to communicate technical information in a concise
manner; c) the ability to distill disparate information into a cohesive product

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CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 1

Over 200 published research papers

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 2

Evaluation is weighted toward a term paper, allowing students to pursue a

This course complements the needs of CEEs online CM PMS program. It

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 3

Sections 3 and 6 of AASHTO LRFD 6th edition

Fu, Bridge Design and Evaluation, 2013

Course notes (slides) and other supplemental material

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 4

Term Paper deliverables:

In other words, plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone

Plagiarism is a serious breach of academic integrity and will not be tolerated.

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 6

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 7

Plagiarism is a disservice to ones self you are here to learn

I believe that I have made myself perfectly clear.

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 8

Additionally, there are rules at the bottom of each Wikipedia page

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 9

Be sure to name your files with your last names!

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 10

Students are cautioned that some materials may contain copyrighted

Disseminating course material without expressed consent of Dr. Harries is

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 11

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 12

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 13

Roman Bridge in Aleppo, Syria

Etruscan Arch Bridge: Ponte Di Badia Vulci, Italy

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 14

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering Galileo, Two New Sciences, 1638

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 17

Today, a two level steel truss

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 19

Smithfield Street Bridge, Pittsburgh (1881)

Forth Rail Bridge, Edinburgh (1890)

Brooklyn Bridge (1883)

Pont de Luzancy (1946)

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 22

Alamillo Bridge, Seville (1992)

1 Akashi-Kaiko Japan 1991 m 1998

1 Russky Russia 1104 m 2012

5 Tatara Japan 890 m 1999

Alex Fraser Bridge, Vancouver BC

5 Zoobrucke Germany 259 m 1966

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 28

90 m Maldonado Road Bridge, Uruguay

3 x 38 m Kikko Bridge, Japan (1991)

148 m Yumetsuri Bashi Bridge, Japan (1996)

Clifton Suspension Bridge;

Royal Albert Bridge

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 31

Niagara Falls Suspension Bridge

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 32

108 Concrete Bridges, including:

Salginatobel Bridge Vessv Bridge

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 33

Lin and Tang, more than any modern

San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge (Tang)

CEE 2347 Bridge Engineering 35

As Engineers, we use the sciences of Mechanics (statics and dynamics) and

There are only three fundamental actions (stresses): Tension, Compression