Scouring around bridge pier: a comprehensive review of countermeasure techniques

Abstract

Scouring around bridge piers significantly threatens bridge stability and can cause tragic failures if not addressed effectively. Several remedial techniques have been developed to reduce local scour depth around bridge piers, including using scour countermeasures such as riprap, collar plate, slot, submerged vane, sacrificial pile, etc. These countermeasures can be used alone or in combination to provide additional protection against local scour. The selection of countermeasures depends on flow velocity, river bed sediment type, and bridge geometry. A thorough analysis of these factors is necessary before selecting a countermeasure. In this paper, an attempt has been made to summarize the efficiency of different remedial techniques to reduce scour depth around the bridge pier. The stability of the bed armouring device depends on its depth and installation position around the bridge pier, and its efficiency decreases as flow velocity increases. It is found that significant scour protection devices are more efficient in clear water scouring (CWS) conditions (V/Vc1.0) than live bed scouring (LBS) conditions (V/Vc>1.0). The combination of flow-altering devices is crucial in reducing scour, with a collar plate and slot combination being more effective than a single slot. The findings of this review paper are to provide a valuable resource for engineers and policymakers seeking to design and implement effective strategies for mitigating local scour around bridge piers.
Keywords: Local scour, bridge pier, remedial technique, bed armouring devices, flow-altering devices