Fatigue Performance of Rib-to-Deck Joints Strengthened With Internal Welding

Abstract

"Rib-to-deck joints of orthotropic steel decks (OSDs) in steel bridges are susceptible to longitudinal fatigue cracking, which often results in considerable costs as well as traffic interruption. This paper numerically simulated the Crack II of rib-to-deck joint and analyzed the crack failure mode of the joint. To mitigate such cracking, a strengthening method using internal welding was investigated. The effects of initial crack size, internal weld size and crack depth on the stress intensity factor (SIF) of crack tip on rib-to-deck fatigue details were studied by finite element method. The finite element analysis demonstrated that the proposed method can significantly improve the detailed stress range of the weld root, lead to the transfer of crack development mode, and prolong the fatigue life of rib-to-deck joints. Numerical analysis validated the beneficial effect of strengthening measures on the stress intensity factors at crack tips. Calculation of stress intensity factors at crack tips resulted that the crack development law, and the application range of reinforcement method was analyzed. This study provided a reference to the design and application of internal welding in the strengthening of weld details in OSDs."