Establish Bridge Blast and Fire Damage Mitigation and Design Consideration

The research team will investigate fire and blast damage to bridges to develop design and mitigation strategies to enhance structural resilience. Fires and blasts from vehicular collisions, hazardous spills, and encampments beneath bridges pose significant threats to structural integrity and serviceability. To address these significant threats, the researchers will conduct full-scale experimental testing, by constructing a representative bridge, incorporating components aligned with Texas Department of Transportation's (TxDOT’s) practices. The researchers will explore mitigation strategies such as fire-resistant materials, protective coatings, and retrofitting methods to improve bridge performance. The research findings will be contributed to design guidelines addressing fire and blast hazards, reducing economic losses and service disruptions while ensuring bridges can better withstand extreme events.

• Record URL:
  • https://library.ctr.utexas.edu/Presto/project=0-7270

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $1,186,879.00
• Contract Numbers:

  0-7270

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Texas Department of Transportation

  125 E. 11th Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78701-2483
• Managing Organizations:

  Texas Department of Transportation

  125 E. 11th Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78701-2483
• Project Managers:

  Kasberg, Katelyn

• Performing Organizations:

  University of Texas at Arlington

  Box 19308
  Arlington, TX  United States  76019-0308

  Texas A&M Transportation Institute

  Texas A&M University System
  3135 TAMU
  College Station, TX  United States  77843-3135
• Principal Investigators:

  Najafi, Amirali

• Start Date: 20260101
• Expected Completion Date: 20281231
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bridge design; Fire resistance; Fire resistant materials; Hazard mitigation; Protective coatings; Retrofitting; Structural tests
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Highways; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01976891
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Texas Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: 0-7270
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Jan 23 2026 4:09PM