Temperature Effect on Creep Behavior of CFST Arch Bridges

Abstract

Because concrete-filled steel-tube (CFST) arch bridges usually reside in areas with strong temperature effects, which influence concrete creep behavior considerably, this paper aims to present an approach to evaluate the temperature influence on the creep behavior of CFST arch bridges, which has not been reported until now. Based on the microprestress-solidification theory for concrete creep, the age-adjusted effective modulus method and a proposed temperature estimation method were integrated into a finite-element model to calculate the creep behavior of a half-through long-span CFST arch bridge. The comparison between the predictions and measurements validated the efficiency of this approach and also demonstrated the necessity of considering temperature history in the creep-effect analysis of CFST arch bridges. The numerical method proposed in this paper provides a practical way to evaluate the temperature-involved creep effects on CFST structures.