Cross-Frame and Diaphragm Behavior for Steel Bridge Girders with Skewed Supports

摘要

The behavior of cross-frame and diaphragms are not well-understood.Cross-frame spacing limits have been removed from the LRFD Specification, primarily because fatigue cracks have historically been found near the braces.Many engineers use typical details for the bracing members instead of actually designing the bracing for the actual requirements.As a result, the braces are often larger than necessary and tend to attract larger live load forces.This paper presents results from computational investigations that were conducted to determine the stability design requirements and behavior of the braces in systems with I-shaped girders.The studies considered girders with normal and skewed supports.