Analysis of Bridge Deck Smoothness vs. In-Place Geometry of Deck Reinforcement

Quite often concrete bridge decks exhibit significantly more roughness than the roads leading into and away from them. This increased roughness not only contributes to premature deterioration of the deck but also presents a stark contrast to motorists traveling onto and off the bridge. With the increased use of smoothness specifications on the road this disparity in the ride quality becomes more significant in light of the performance measures incorporated in MAP-21. The objective of this project is to determine the correlation between the steel reinforcement in a bridge deck and the measured smoothness of the deck. This work will investigate the relationship between the concrete cover over the rebars as it relates to the roughness of the deck by using non destructive evaluation methods. Ground-coupled ground penetration radar (GPR) will be used to locate steel reinforcement in several bridge decks and estimate characteristics such as concrete cover, layout geometry, and size. At the same time, a walk-behind the surface profile will be used to estimate the surface roughness of the concrete deck. Results from this project will benefit the Department of Transportation (DOT) by allowing it to implement mitigating measures in the design and construction of decks to minimize concrete volume loss over the rebars. The data will also provide a true estimate of the concrete cover over rebars before diamond grinding to ensure that adequate cover is maintained. This information will complement ongoing efforts to standardize diamond grinding of decks to provide an optimum riding surface.

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $131370.00
• Contract Numbers:

  SPR - 2(33)2356

  S000202

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Research and Innovative Technology Administration

  University Transportation Centers Program
  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Performing Organizations:

  URI Transportation Center- RIDOT

  75 Lower College Road
  Kingston, RI  United States  02906
• Principal Investigators:

  Gindy, Mayrai

• Start Date: 20131001
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0
• Source Data: RiP Project 35639

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bridge decks; Diamond grinding; Ground penetrating radar; Ride quality; Roughness; Smoothness; Texture
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01497809
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: University of Rhode Island Transportation Center
• Contract Numbers: SPR - 2(33)2356, S000202
• Files: UTC, RIP
• Created Date: Nov 9 2013 1:00AM