This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Current bridge design codes do not provide adequate criteria/procedures for designing full-depth ... more Current bridge design codes do not provide adequate criteria/procedures for designing full-depth precast concrete deck systems, especially those with shear pocket connections. Instead, these systems and their connections are designed on a case-by-case basis by either conducting necessary testing or adopting the design criteria/ procedures developed primarily for cast-in-place concrete deck systems. Shear pocket connections formed using steel hollow structural sections (HSS) provide a promising solution to connecting precast concrete deck panels to the supporting girders due to their superior structural performance and simplicity of panel fabrication. The main objective of this paper is to develop criteria/procedures for designing HSS formed shear pocket connections in full-depth precast concrete deck systems. These procedures will assist bridge designers in selecting pocket dimensions, HSS thickness, pocket anchorage and reinforcement necessary to maximize the connection capacity while allowing adequate construction tolerance. Experimental investigation (push-off testing) and finite element analysis (FEA) were performed to validate the developed design criteria/procedures. Analysis and testing results indicated that the developed design criteria/procedures for HSS formed shear pocket connections are satisfactory.
Abstract Full-depth precast concrete deck systems have several advantages compared with cast-in-p... more Abstract Full-depth precast concrete deck systems have several advantages compared with cast-in-place concrete deck systems in bridge construction, such as improved construction quality and safety,...
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Past research studies have been conducted on the ductility of concrete members reinforced with we... more Past research studies have been conducted on the ductility of concrete members reinforced with welded wire reinforcement (WWR) and determined a new phenomenon called strain localization reduces member ductility due to superior bond between WWR and concrete. Such studies have concluded that strain localization adversely affects the ductility of members reinforced with WWR and it is unsafe to use WWR as tension reinforcement. In this study, 50 simply-supported, concrete slabs with a representative slab width of 2 ft (610 mm), thickness of 7 in. (180 mm), and total length of 21 ft (6.4 m) were tested to further examine the strain localization phenomenon on global deformations. Two major parameters were investigated, cross-weld spacing and wire diameter. The impact of these two parameters on strength, ductility, and mode of failure of concrete members reinforced with WWR was also studied. Moment curvature analysis was used to estimate inelastic deflections and ductility to investigate the effect of the reinforcement total elongation at failure of the wire material on the overall member ductility. It was observed that members reinforced with WWR with cross-weld spacing of 14 in. (355 mm) or more had similar ductility as members reinforced with loose wires (without cross-weld). Members reinforced with WWR with closely spaced cross-weld (i.e., 3 or 7 in. (75 or 180 mm)) showed erratic and often less ductility, however, the wire itself was shown to have low ductility. Failure of members reinforced with WWR provided sufficient warning prior to failure as evidenced by the ductility ratios in excess of 2.5. Additionally, a momentcurvature analysis based parametric study showed that an acceptable level of ductility can be achieved with a minimum total elongation of wire reinforcement of 3% at failure.
This paper introduces a novel composite shear connectors system used to transfer interface shear ... more This paper introduces a novel composite shear connectors system used to transfer interface shear forces in a precast concrete sandwich panel. The shear connectors consist of non-proprietary non-composite commercial glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) pin connectors that are laid out in a star pattern and clustered at the top and bottom of the panels. The testing program consisted of thirty-four push-off, twenty-three pullout, and eight full-scale flexural specimens was conducted to evaluate the structural performance of the new shear connectors. The effect of concrete wythe thickness, insulation wythe thickness, and concrete compressive strength was investigated throughout these tests. Additionally, the effect of bond between insulation and concrete wythes was investigated using push-off tests. The flexural test results were compared with predicted fully composite, noncomposite, and partially composite values to evaluate the overall panel performance. The comparison showed satisfactory performance with a lower bound of 90% composite action for specimens with 100 mm thick insulation wythe and full composite action for most panels with 50 mm thick insulation. Idealized shear load-slip curves were also developed that account for various parameters to assist design engineers in designing insulated sandwich wall panels with the proposed shear connectors system.
Several methods have been proposed for calculating unbonded tendon stress increase at nominal ben... more Several methods have been proposed for calculating unbonded tendon stress increase at nominal bending resistance. Some of these methods are empirical approaches that are based on experimental observations or statistical analyses. However, more recently, some researchers developed methods that are based on collapse mechanisms that consider different parameters such as span-to-depth ratio, material properties, continuity, and inelastic hinge formation. All of these methods relied on simple span test data in model calibration with less consideration for continuous members because there are very few experiments available in the literature. Furthermore, there is a great need for additional experimental data in this area as the largest assembled database in the literature contains only 80 continuous unbonded tendon reinforced members, mostly two-span, driven by the expense and difficulty of such tests. In this study, the research team tested four three-span, 59.5 ft (18.1 m) long specimens with variable prestressing and mild reinforcement ratios. The accuracy of seven different prediction methods was evaluated for predicting stress increase in unbonded post-tensioned members. The comparison between measured and predicted stress increase values showed that all prediction methods conservatively predict tendon stress increase at nominal flexural resistance. The measured-to-predicted tendon stress increase ratio ranged from 1.8 to 3.5, at flexural failure, and measured stress increase ranged from 38.4 to 68.5 ksi (265-472 MPa). An optimized collapse mechanism model and the Japan Prestressed Concrete Engineering Association methods provided the most accurate prediction for tendon stress increase when compared to other prediction methods. Specimens reinforced with bonded mild reinforcement less than the minimum required by ACI 318-14 code showed less ductility than those reinforced with the minimum required reinforcement or more and obtained lower strand stress, indicating the specification is adequate.
2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebra... more 2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebraska. Department of TransportationUtah State UniversityNebraska. Department of TransportationNebraskaUnited StatesBridge decksBridge substructuresLive loadsLoad testsPosttensioningPrecast concreteTraffic loadsBridge constructionStrain measurementDeflectionDeck PanelsAccelerated Bridge ConstructionProject No. SPR-P1(15) M026Final ReportThe Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post-tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck.104
This paper presents a new bridge deck reinforcement alternative using hybrid reinforced concrete ... more This paper presents a new bridge deck reinforcement alternative using hybrid reinforced concrete (Hybrid) consisting of Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) rebar and alkali-resistant fiberglass composite macrofibers added to the concrete mixture. Fiberglass composite macrofibers are a miniaturized GFRP reinforcing bar that is a composite of resin and glass fibers. An experimental testing program and analytical modeling were conducted to evaluate the structural performance at the service and ultimate limit states. Thirteen full-scale bridge deck specimens were constructed and tested under static and fatigue loading. The fatigue loading was applied up to two million cycles at a frequency of 4 Hz. Post-fatigue, the specimens were tested to failure to compare pre-and post-fatigue behavior. Simplified and moment-curvature analytical models were used to predict the specimens’ flexural strength at the ultimate level, and both were found to be accurate for predicting pre- and post-fatigue...
The use of full-depth precast concrete deck systems in bridge construction has been increasing in... more The use of full-depth precast concrete deck systems in bridge construction has been increasing in recent years due to their high production quality, reduced construction duration and its impact on traveling public. Precast concrete deck systems can be either composite or non-composite with the supporting steel/concrete girders. Composite systems are more common due to their superior structural performance and reduced overall superstructure depth and cost. Most of the composite systems require the use of clustered shear connectors to simplify panel production and erection. Current bridge design codes do not provide specific procedures/criteria for designing full-depth precast concrete deck systems, specifically those with shear pockets and clustered shear connectors. Instead, these connections are designed on a case-by-case basis by either conducting necessary testing or adopting the design procedures/criteria developed primarily for cast-in-place concrete deck systems. Shear pocket ...
2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebra... more 2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebraska. Department of TransportationUtah State UniversityNebraska. Department of TransportationNebraskaUnited StatesBridge decksBridge substructuresLive loadsLoad testsPosttensioningPrecast concreteTraffic loadsBridge constructionStrain measurementDeflectionDeck PanelsAccelerated Bridge ConstructionProject No. SPR-P1(15) M026Final ReportThe Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post-tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck.104
■ Experimental results show 25% higher interface shear resistance results for the new mechanical ... more ■ Experimental results show 25% higher interface shear resistance results for the new mechanical connection than for the conventional connection. Full-depth precast concrete bridge deck systems have been increasingly used in new construction and as a replacement for deteriorating cast-in-place concrete decks because of their high quality, durability, and ease/ speed of construction. Full-depth precast concrete deck systems were originally used in the 1960s as noncomposite with the supporting girders, and their first use in composite construction was in 1973. Composite full-depth precast concrete deck systems provide economical design because they satisfy strength and serviceability requirements using smaller and shallower girder sections than are used in noncomposite systems. Precast concrete deck panels are usually made composite with the supporting girders via shear connectors, such as shear studs, bent bars, or threaded rods, projecting from the girder top flange and embedded in ...
Belitic calcium sulfoaluminate (BCSA) cement is a sustainable alternative to Portland cement that... more Belitic calcium sulfoaluminate (BCSA) cement is a sustainable alternative to Portland cement that offers rapid setting characteristics that could accelerate throughput in precast concrete operations. BCSA cements have lower carbon footprint, embodied energy, and natural resource consumption than Portland cement. However, these benefits are not often utilized in structural members due to lack of specifications and perceived logistical challenges. This paper evaluates the performance of a full-scale precast, prestressed voided deck slab bridge girder made with BCSA cement concrete. The rapid-set properties of BCSA cement allowed the initial concrete compressive strength to reach the required 4300 psi release strength at 6.5 h after casting. Prestress losses were monitored long-term using vibrating wire strain gages cast into the concrete at the level of the prestressing strands and the data were compared to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Load an...
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Current bridge design codes do not provide adequate criteria/procedures for designing full-depth ... more Current bridge design codes do not provide adequate criteria/procedures for designing full-depth precast concrete deck systems, especially those with shear pocket connections. Instead, these systems and their connections are designed on a case-by-case basis by either conducting necessary testing or adopting the design criteria/ procedures developed primarily for cast-in-place concrete deck systems. Shear pocket connections formed using steel hollow structural sections (HSS) provide a promising solution to connecting precast concrete deck panels to the supporting girders due to their superior structural performance and simplicity of panel fabrication. The main objective of this paper is to develop criteria/procedures for designing HSS formed shear pocket connections in full-depth precast concrete deck systems. These procedures will assist bridge designers in selecting pocket dimensions, HSS thickness, pocket anchorage and reinforcement necessary to maximize the connection capacity while allowing adequate construction tolerance. Experimental investigation (push-off testing) and finite element analysis (FEA) were performed to validate the developed design criteria/procedures. Analysis and testing results indicated that the developed design criteria/procedures for HSS formed shear pocket connections are satisfactory.
Abstract Full-depth precast concrete deck systems have several advantages compared with cast-in-p... more Abstract Full-depth precast concrete deck systems have several advantages compared with cast-in-place concrete deck systems in bridge construction, such as improved construction quality and safety,...
This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative... more This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY
Past research studies have been conducted on the ductility of concrete members reinforced with we... more Past research studies have been conducted on the ductility of concrete members reinforced with welded wire reinforcement (WWR) and determined a new phenomenon called strain localization reduces member ductility due to superior bond between WWR and concrete. Such studies have concluded that strain localization adversely affects the ductility of members reinforced with WWR and it is unsafe to use WWR as tension reinforcement. In this study, 50 simply-supported, concrete slabs with a representative slab width of 2 ft (610 mm), thickness of 7 in. (180 mm), and total length of 21 ft (6.4 m) were tested to further examine the strain localization phenomenon on global deformations. Two major parameters were investigated, cross-weld spacing and wire diameter. The impact of these two parameters on strength, ductility, and mode of failure of concrete members reinforced with WWR was also studied. Moment curvature analysis was used to estimate inelastic deflections and ductility to investigate the effect of the reinforcement total elongation at failure of the wire material on the overall member ductility. It was observed that members reinforced with WWR with cross-weld spacing of 14 in. (355 mm) or more had similar ductility as members reinforced with loose wires (without cross-weld). Members reinforced with WWR with closely spaced cross-weld (i.e., 3 or 7 in. (75 or 180 mm)) showed erratic and often less ductility, however, the wire itself was shown to have low ductility. Failure of members reinforced with WWR provided sufficient warning prior to failure as evidenced by the ductility ratios in excess of 2.5. Additionally, a momentcurvature analysis based parametric study showed that an acceptable level of ductility can be achieved with a minimum total elongation of wire reinforcement of 3% at failure.
This paper introduces a novel composite shear connectors system used to transfer interface shear ... more This paper introduces a novel composite shear connectors system used to transfer interface shear forces in a precast concrete sandwich panel. The shear connectors consist of non-proprietary non-composite commercial glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) pin connectors that are laid out in a star pattern and clustered at the top and bottom of the panels. The testing program consisted of thirty-four push-off, twenty-three pullout, and eight full-scale flexural specimens was conducted to evaluate the structural performance of the new shear connectors. The effect of concrete wythe thickness, insulation wythe thickness, and concrete compressive strength was investigated throughout these tests. Additionally, the effect of bond between insulation and concrete wythes was investigated using push-off tests. The flexural test results were compared with predicted fully composite, noncomposite, and partially composite values to evaluate the overall panel performance. The comparison showed satisfactory performance with a lower bound of 90% composite action for specimens with 100 mm thick insulation wythe and full composite action for most panels with 50 mm thick insulation. Idealized shear load-slip curves were also developed that account for various parameters to assist design engineers in designing insulated sandwich wall panels with the proposed shear connectors system.
Several methods have been proposed for calculating unbonded tendon stress increase at nominal ben... more Several methods have been proposed for calculating unbonded tendon stress increase at nominal bending resistance. Some of these methods are empirical approaches that are based on experimental observations or statistical analyses. However, more recently, some researchers developed methods that are based on collapse mechanisms that consider different parameters such as span-to-depth ratio, material properties, continuity, and inelastic hinge formation. All of these methods relied on simple span test data in model calibration with less consideration for continuous members because there are very few experiments available in the literature. Furthermore, there is a great need for additional experimental data in this area as the largest assembled database in the literature contains only 80 continuous unbonded tendon reinforced members, mostly two-span, driven by the expense and difficulty of such tests. In this study, the research team tested four three-span, 59.5 ft (18.1 m) long specimens with variable prestressing and mild reinforcement ratios. The accuracy of seven different prediction methods was evaluated for predicting stress increase in unbonded post-tensioned members. The comparison between measured and predicted stress increase values showed that all prediction methods conservatively predict tendon stress increase at nominal flexural resistance. The measured-to-predicted tendon stress increase ratio ranged from 1.8 to 3.5, at flexural failure, and measured stress increase ranged from 38.4 to 68.5 ksi (265-472 MPa). An optimized collapse mechanism model and the Japan Prestressed Concrete Engineering Association methods provided the most accurate prediction for tendon stress increase when compared to other prediction methods. Specimens reinforced with bonded mild reinforcement less than the minimum required by ACI 318-14 code showed less ductility than those reinforced with the minimum required reinforcement or more and obtained lower strand stress, indicating the specification is adequate.
2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebra... more 2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebraska. Department of TransportationUtah State UniversityNebraska. Department of TransportationNebraskaUnited StatesBridge decksBridge substructuresLive loadsLoad testsPosttensioningPrecast concreteTraffic loadsBridge constructionStrain measurementDeflectionDeck PanelsAccelerated Bridge ConstructionProject No. SPR-P1(15) M026Final ReportThe Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post-tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck.104
This paper presents a new bridge deck reinforcement alternative using hybrid reinforced concrete ... more This paper presents a new bridge deck reinforcement alternative using hybrid reinforced concrete (Hybrid) consisting of Glass Fiber Reinforced Polymer (GFRP) rebar and alkali-resistant fiberglass composite macrofibers added to the concrete mixture. Fiberglass composite macrofibers are a miniaturized GFRP reinforcing bar that is a composite of resin and glass fibers. An experimental testing program and analytical modeling were conducted to evaluate the structural performance at the service and ultimate limit states. Thirteen full-scale bridge deck specimens were constructed and tested under static and fatigue loading. The fatigue loading was applied up to two million cycles at a frequency of 4 Hz. Post-fatigue, the specimens were tested to failure to compare pre-and post-fatigue behavior. Simplified and moment-curvature analytical models were used to predict the specimens’ flexural strength at the ultimate level, and both were found to be accurate for predicting pre- and post-fatigue...
The use of full-depth precast concrete deck systems in bridge construction has been increasing in... more The use of full-depth precast concrete deck systems in bridge construction has been increasing in recent years due to their high production quality, reduced construction duration and its impact on traveling public. Precast concrete deck systems can be either composite or non-composite with the supporting steel/concrete girders. Composite systems are more common due to their superior structural performance and reduced overall superstructure depth and cost. Most of the composite systems require the use of clustered shear connectors to simplify panel production and erection. Current bridge design codes do not provide specific procedures/criteria for designing full-depth precast concrete deck systems, specifically those with shear pockets and clustered shear connectors. Instead, these connections are designed on a case-by-case basis by either conducting necessary testing or adopting the design procedures/criteria developed primarily for cast-in-place concrete deck systems. Shear pocket ...
2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebra... more 2019PDFTech ReportMorcous, GeorgeMaguire, MarcTawadrous, RaedUniversity of Nebraska--LincolnNebraska. Department of TransportationUtah State UniversityNebraska. Department of TransportationNebraskaUnited StatesBridge decksBridge substructuresLive loadsLoad testsPosttensioningPrecast concreteTraffic loadsBridge constructionStrain measurementDeflectionDeck PanelsAccelerated Bridge ConstructionProject No. SPR-P1(15) M026Final ReportThe Kearney East Bypass bridge is the first project that implements the newly developed precast concrete deck system (known as 2nd generation NUDECK). The new system consists of full-depth full-width precast prestressed concrete deck panels that are 12 ft (3.66 m) long each. The panels have covered shear pockets at 4 ft (1.22 m) spacing on each girder line to host clustered shear connectors that are adjustable in height. Narrow unreinforced transverse joints are used to eliminate the need for deck overlay. Also, deck panels are post-tensioned in the longitudinal direction using a new post-tensioning system that eliminates the need for post-tensioning ducts, strand threading, and grouting operations. The project has twin bridges: a southbound bridge with cast-in-place (CIP) concrete deck, and northbound bridge with the new precast concrete (PC) deck system. The two bridges were completed in the fall of 2015 and opened to traffic in the fall of 2016. Due to the unique features of the new PC deck system, this research project was initiated to monitor short-term performance using live load test and long-term performance under traffic loads to evaluate the system performance. Both CIP concrete deck and PC deck bridges were instrumented and tested during the summer of 2016 to compare the performance of their superstructures. Also, finite element analysis (FEA) was conducted to predict the performance of the new PC deck system. The results of both analytical and experimental investigations indicated that the PC deck system performs as predicted and very comparable to the conventional CIP concrete deck.104
■ Experimental results show 25% higher interface shear resistance results for the new mechanical ... more ■ Experimental results show 25% higher interface shear resistance results for the new mechanical connection than for the conventional connection. Full-depth precast concrete bridge deck systems have been increasingly used in new construction and as a replacement for deteriorating cast-in-place concrete decks because of their high quality, durability, and ease/ speed of construction. Full-depth precast concrete deck systems were originally used in the 1960s as noncomposite with the supporting girders, and their first use in composite construction was in 1973. Composite full-depth precast concrete deck systems provide economical design because they satisfy strength and serviceability requirements using smaller and shallower girder sections than are used in noncomposite systems. Precast concrete deck panels are usually made composite with the supporting girders via shear connectors, such as shear studs, bent bars, or threaded rods, projecting from the girder top flange and embedded in ...
Belitic calcium sulfoaluminate (BCSA) cement is a sustainable alternative to Portland cement that... more Belitic calcium sulfoaluminate (BCSA) cement is a sustainable alternative to Portland cement that offers rapid setting characteristics that could accelerate throughput in precast concrete operations. BCSA cements have lower carbon footprint, embodied energy, and natural resource consumption than Portland cement. However, these benefits are not often utilized in structural members due to lack of specifications and perceived logistical challenges. This paper evaluates the performance of a full-scale precast, prestressed voided deck slab bridge girder made with BCSA cement concrete. The rapid-set properties of BCSA cement allowed the initial concrete compressive strength to reach the required 4300 psi release strength at 6.5 h after casting. Prestress losses were monitored long-term using vibrating wire strain gages cast into the concrete at the level of the prestressing strands and the data were compared to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Load an...
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