Feasibility Investigation of Segmentally Precast Bridge Piers for Accelerated Construction

Principal Investigator:

Matt Rouse, jmr19@iastate.edu (other projects)

Co-Principal Investigator:

• Terry Wipf, tjwipf@iastate.edu (other projects)
• Wayne Klaiber, klaiber@iastate.edu (other projects)

Project Status: In Progress

Start Date: 05/01/2006
End Date: 07/31/2007


Research Objective: The proposed research is to investigate an innovative precast pier system that, when successfully developed, could result in a significant leap forward in terms of reduced construction time, costs, and structural performance of bridge piers.

The system under investigation offers a radically different design approach and details that can reduce the construction time and improve structural performance. Key features include steel belts at the ends of segments, external refinforcement of segment joints that have bolted connections, and bearing pads between segments to avoid labor-intensive grouting procedures.

The primary objective is to simulate, evaluate, and test several component materials, connection details, and componenet configurations to identify the most cost effective and structurally advantageous means of constructing the pier.

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