Bridge beam diaphragms
Bridge beam diaphragms
(OP)
I am currently working on a rehabilitation project on a bridge that consists of a concrete deck supported on rolled girders. The bridge has minimal skew, is not on a radius, and is non-composite. We are currently considering having the contractor temporarily remove several of the bridge girder diaphragms to facilitate some of the repair work.
I have always been under the impression that, in scenarios similar to these, that the diaphragms serve little purpose once the deck has been placed and cured. We are thinking of leaving the diaphragms in place in the negative moment regions to provide the necessary bracing, but in the positive moment regions it seems like they could be removed without affecting the structures capacity.
I’d like to hear what others think.
Thanks,
Tim
I have always been under the impression that, in scenarios similar to these, that the diaphragms serve little purpose once the deck has been placed and cured. We are thinking of leaving the diaphragms in place in the negative moment regions to provide the necessary bracing, but in the positive moment regions it seems like they could be removed without affecting the structures capacity.
I’d like to hear what others think.
Thanks,
Tim





RE: Bridge beam diaphragms
If you can’t avoid removing the diaphragms during repair, I would have the contractor replace any diaphragms that are removed. You could replace with new diaphragms if the existing are in bad shape or consider reinstalling the existing diaphragms if possible.
How many diaphragms are you talking about??? I would weight the cost of replacing the diaphragms versus the over all project cost. If the diaphragms are a small percentage, I would just replace them with new diaphragms.
That’s my $0.02
RE: Bridge beam diaphragms