Research on the Clamping Force Performance of Cable Clamps on Long-Span Suspension Bridges Under Solar Radiation

Abstract

The anti-slip performance of cable clamps is one of the important structures to ensure the safety of suspension bridges, and there is currently limited research on the influence of temperature. by using validated meteorological data, an ABAQUS thermal coupling model is established to obtain the steady-state temperature field for a representative period and apply it as a mapped field to analyze the stress results of the cable clamp-main cable structure. The analysis concludes that the derived analytical solution in this study is close to the numerical solution of the finite element method, with a maximum error of 4.2%, meeting the requirements of practical engineering. The increase in temperature of the screw itself reduces the pre-tensioning force, while the increase in structural temperature, when the screw does not experience temperature variation, can actually increase the friction force of the cable clamp to some extent, which is beneficial for improving the friction resistance of the cable clamp. During the installation of cable clamps, it is recommended to perform it at low temperatures, and the surface of the screw can be thermally insulated to maximize the increase in friction force caused by structural temperature rise.