STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE OF LONGITUDINALLY POST-TENSIONED

As the aging bridges and infrastructure within the US continue to deteriorate, traffic delays due to construction will become more and more common. One method that can reduce delays due to bridge construction is to use precast deck panels. Precast deck panels can significantly reduce the overall length of the construction project. The panels can be manufactured ahead of time, and with higher quality control than is possible in the field. One of the reasons precast deck panels are not widely accepted is because of a lack of research concerning the required post-tensioning force, shear stud pocket placement, and proper joint design. In a recent dissertation (Swenty 2009) numerous recommendations were made for joint design, shear stud pocket design, and post-tensioning force for full-depth precast deck panel bridges. Design drawings were included for the replacement of a bridge located in Scott County, Virginia. The research in this report focuses on the short-term and long-term testing of this bridge. The short-term testing involved performing a live load test in which two trucks of known weight and dimensions were positioned on the bridge in order to maximize the negative moment at the joints over the piers and document strains and deflections at a number of other critical locations. The long-term testing involved monitoring the strains within the deck and on one of the six girders for a number of months in order t