Application of sandwich-structures in steel bridges

摘要

The paper addresses a sandwich solution (the so-called SPS-system) for steel bridges, first as a method for refurbishment of existing bridges and second as an approach for a new cross-section for steel bridges. For both, an analytic approach is given that takes account of the non-linear stress distributions over the depth of the bridge’s cross-section due to the shear stiffness of the sandwich core. The method is based on orthogonal non-linear warping functions similar to the ones used for determining shear lag effects in EN 1993-1-5. The differential equation system derived from an energy formulation is solved numerically in the framework of an automated software solution. The results are used to derive simple engineering approaches for effective widths allowing for an easy design. Finally an example for the application of the SPS system in modern bridge design is given.