Shamsabadi et al. 1 THREE DIMENSIONAL NONLINEAR SEISMIC SOIL-FOUNDATION-STRUCTURE INTERACTION ANALYSIS OF A SKEWED BRIDGE CONSIDERING NEAR FAULT EFFECTS

This paper presents results of three-dimensional nonlinear seismic soil-foundation-structure interaction analyses of a three-span bridge having a skew angle of 25 degrees. The analyses were performed on a nonlinear dynamic finite element (FE) model using the computer program SAP 2000. Four earthquake acceleration records with various amplitudes of velocity pulses were used as input ground motions in the analyses. Each record has two components, which were applied simultaneously to the longitudinal and transverse directions. Results of the analyses indicate that the input motions with strong velocity pulses may cause excessive displacements of the bridge super structure and abutments. Further study is needed to investigate the effects of the strong velocity pulses on the overall response of a skewed bridge and fully understand the dynamic behavior of a skewed bridge