Experimental study on improving plastic deformability of bracing panels and verification of application to deck steel arch bridges

Abstract

In this study, we investigated reinforcement methods to improve plastic deformability after brace buckling for the end columns of deck arch bridges. To confirm the difference in ultimate behavior with and without reinforcement, cyclic loading experiments were conducted using half-size specimens. We found that restraining the joints at the bottom ends of the brace materials can suppress the decrease in load after the peak. An analysis was performed using a full model to verify the effect of reinforcement on the behavior of the entire arch bridge.