Numerical performance assessment of buried corrugated metal culvert subject to service load conditions

Abstract

<jats:p> Two- and three-dimensional continuum finite element methods were used to assess the mechanical response of buried metal culverts subjected to service load conditions. The analysis explored the influence of the culvert profile, cover depth, section aspect ratio, and service load magnitude on culvert deformation, thrust, and section moment response. The numerical predictions were calibrated using third-party experimental data. For shallow burial conditions, the culvert section profile was found to be an influential parameter on the predicted culvert response where the soil–culvert interaction mechanisms and load transfer processes are governed by nonlinear behaviour. Models that incorporate the corrugated culvert profile provided better estimates of the culvert thrust than the simplified computational models that are typically used in analysis. Results from this study demonstrate that existing simplified methods cannot capture the local variation (i.e., amplitude, waveform) of the membrane strain and section thrust particularly between the crest and trough of corrugation. </jats:p>

Optimization of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Bars for Reinforced Concrete Column Using Nonlinear Finite Element Algorithms

“…Moreover, bridges and culverts must be stable during an earthquake to have the vital needs delivered to their intended place on time. Past events such as fires [1][2][3], earthquakes [4][5][6], and defects such as corrosion [7][8][9] of steel in reinforced concrete member, durability issues including shrinkage cracking [10,11], thermal cracking [3,12], chemical attack [11,13,14], alkali-silica reaction [15][16][17], alkali-carbonate reaction as well as carbonation, delayed ettringite formation, freeze-thaw [17] and scaling [18,19] were observed in many reinforced concrete structures and infrastructures previously studied by the researchers. The results of these studies have shown the vulnerability of these types of buildings.…”