Forced vibration testing was employed as a level I non-destructive health monitoring technique throughout the experimental structural characterization of a full-scale FRP (fiber reinforced polymer) bridge system. The system consists of concrete filled carbon/epoxy tubes and an E-glass/Polyester deck, and is representative of a bridge section in the positive moment region. The system was characterized for stiffness and overall response under monotonic and cyclic fatigue loads. Forced vibration testing was conducted at each of the test stages, including after failure. Experimental results were seen to correspond well with analytical results for mode shapes and frequencies obtained through an eigen-value analysis of a plane-grillage finite element model. The test method was shown to be effective in indicating changes in response as a function of load level and damage accumulation, and is expected to have significant potential for eventual routine health monitoring and damage detection of such structural systems in the field.
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