Shear-Lag in Steel-UHPC Bridges: Fast Facts!

Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC) paired with steel in bridge construction delivers lighter, stronger, and more durable structures—and understanding shear lag in these systems is crucial for safety and performance! 😎🏗️

What is Shear-Lag?

Imagine the flange of a steel-UHPC composite girder: it's supposed to bear load evenly, but shear lag causes uneven longitudinal strain across its width due to shear deformation—resulting in stress concentration at certain regions. Not accounting for this can lead to overstressed segments and potential safety issues. #ShearLag #BridgeDesign

Why Steel-UHPC Composite Bridges Matter

• Using UHPC in place of normal concrete cuts deck thickness by 50–60% and self-weight by ~40%, enabling longer spans (up to ~1,000 m) and higher performance designs. #Lightweight #LongSpan MDPI

• In negative bending zones, UHPC exhibits 340% higher cracking load and 26% greater ultimate flexural capacity than traditional steel–concrete composites. #HighPerformance MDPI

• Bridges with UHPC decks help reduce fatigue stresses by 80% and double fatigue life, compared to orthotropic steel decks. #Durability MDPI

Investigating Shear-Lag in Steel-UHPC Structures

1. Ribbed Slab Systems (SU-RSCS)

A study introduced a theoretical model using the bar simulation method to analyze shear-lag in steel-UHPC ribbed slab composite structures (SU-RSCS). Key findings:

• The width-to-span ratio significantly influences shear-lag, whereas the number of transverse ribs does not. #DesignSensitive MDPI

• The bar simulation method reliably predicts elastic-stage shear-lag behavior and can guide design for SU-RSCS, SU-LRSCS (longitudinal ribs), and SU-WSCS (waffle slab systems). #ModelingMethods MDPI

2. Non-Prismatic CSW–UHPC Box Girders

In experiments with non-prismatic prestressed composite box girders featuring corrugated steel webs (CSW) and UHPC flanges:

• Shear-lag is more pronounced in stress-concentration regions than in uniform areas.

• Recommended conservative shear-lag coefficient (λ): minimum 1.1 for non-concentrated zones and 1.25 for concentrated ones.

• Boundary conditions and loading type significantly affect shear-lag behavior. #AdvancedComposite SpringerLink

Other Notable Shear-Lag & Shear Performance Studies

• Hollow steel-UHPC composite decks: Shear span ratio, hollow tube geometry, and interface treatments critically impact failure modes and ultimate shear strength. #HollowDecks 

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