Structural Concrete 2011 Student Design Competition - 2nd Place

During my studies at Edinburgh Napier University I entered a design competition with a fellow student.  We won 2nd place out of entries from universities and colleges all over the United Kingdom.

For the competition we had to put together an initial design report with two viable options for the design of a new rugby club grandstand.  The design options had to provide tiered seating, hospitality suites, and a club room.  Of the two options, we developed the most feasible design, producing detailed calculations and typical drawings.  In addition, we developed guidance for future inspections and sustainability.  Images of our two design options are shown here. A link to the full report is provided below.

Design Report

Description of Competition

Dissertation: Analysis and Design of Prestressed Concrete Bridges to Eurocodes

This paper examines the design of prestressed concrete bridges in accordance with Eurocodes. The design of these bridges is complex and challenging for a number of reasons and the difficulty increases with the Eurocode requirements, which have only been implemented in the last year.This study provides guidance on the principles and procedures for design and explains how they are applied with the Eurocodes. Following a discussion of the basic design principles, two design procedures are developed; the first for the application of traffic loads on a bridge and the second for the design of both single and continuous composite prestressed concrete beams. These procedures outline the basic design process for a prestressed concrete bridge that may be followed by engineers. With clarification of the steps in each procedure and calculations for two bridges, the design is better understood. While this dissertation cannot replace the value of engineering experience, conclusions regarding application of these procedures may help to streamline the process for future investigations.

Analysis and Design of Prestressed Concrete Bridges to Eurocodes

Gusset Plate Analysis for the MD 291 Through Truss Bridge over Morgan Creek

On August 1, 2007 the I-35W Mississippi River Truss Bridge collapsed in Minneapolis, MN.  Over the next 18 months, the National Transportation Safety Board performed a comprehensive investigation into the cause of the failure. The final report can be found here.  It was found that the primary cause of collapse was undersized gusset plates.  At the time gusset plates were typically assumed to be more conservatively designed than other members and were typically not included in load ratings.  Today that is no longer the case.

As a result of the findings mentioned above, I was tasked with the analysis of gusset plates for a through truss bridge on MD 291 in Kent County, Maryland to ensure another collapse does not occur.  The 193' long structure has 24 joints connected by gusset plates.  This project provided a unique challenge since the analysis is done by hand and the size and geometry of the gusset plates varies significantly.  The gusset plates are analyzed for shear and axial force effects in accordance with Publication No. FHWA-IF-09-014 (or more recently the AASHTO Manual for Bridge Evaluation).  Member connections are analyzed for bolt/rivet capacity, block shear capacity and Whitmore section stresses.

The photos below show the detailed information typically required for a gusset plate analysis to be completed.  All photos show different information for the same gusset plate.

    

Design of Route 501 Bridge over James River

I have recently been involved in the design of a $20.7 million dollar project for the replacement of the Route 501 Bridge over James River on the Amherst/Bedford County Line in Virginia.  The project is being advertised for construction this summer.  This bridge carries an average daily traffic volume of about 1900 vehicles per day.  The proposed replacement bridge is five-span steel plate girder bridge that is to be located about 0.7 miles downstream of the existing structure.  I was involved in the design of the abutments, one of which was set on drilled shafts.  The link below takes you to information posted for the public hearing.

In Design: Route 501 Bridge over James River