Yongquan Dong

In order to promote the development of bridge assembly technology and accelerate the application of rectangular steel-tube–concrete composite truss bridges, this study focuses on the Yellow River Diversion Jiqing Main Canal Bridge as the engineering example and conducts a numerical analysis of a rectangular steel-tube–concrete composite truss bridge. Based on the results of the analysis, structural optimization is achieved in three dimensions—structural design, construction methods, and force analysis—leading to the establishment of key design parameters for through-type ultra-high-performance rectangular steel-tube–concrete composite truss bridges. The results show that filling the hollow sections with ultra-high-strength concrete can significantly enhance the load-bearing capacity. Additionally, employing prestressed concrete components addresses the bending and tensile load capacity challenges of composite structures, thus maximizing the material strength advantages. The proposed preliminary design scheme incorporates prestressed PBL-reinforced tie rods filled with ultra-high-performance concrete with optimal design parameters, such as high span ratios, wide span ratios, and ideal segment lengths, are suggested to ensure that the strength, stiffness, and stability comply with relevant standards. While ensuring that the structure meets safety, applicability, and durability criteria, the preliminary design scheme reduces steel usage by 23.5%, concrete usage by 11.6%, and overall costs by 17.29% compared to the original design. The proposed design demonstrates distinct advantages over the original in terms of mechanical performance, construction efficiency, economic viability, and durability, highlighting its promising application potential.

In recent years, square hollow section (SHS) joints with concrete-filled square hollow section (CFSHS) chords have increasingly been used in truss bridges where the fatigue life reliability is a critical issue. In this paper, a finite element analysis was performed to investigate the SCFs in SHS-CFSHS T-joints under in-plane bending in the brace, axial force in the chord and in-plane bending in the chord. The finite element models were developed and validated with experimental results. Then a parametric study was conducted with a reasonable range of three key non-dimensional parameters, i.e., β (width ratio between brace and chord), 2γ (width–to–wall thickness ratio of the chord) and τ (wall thickness ratio between brace and chord). Consequently, the stress concentration factor formulae for the fatigue design of SHS-CFSHS T-joints were proposed through multiple regression analysis. For in-plane bending in the brace, the maximum stress concentration factors were found at lines B and C for thick-walled chords (2γ = 25.0), while the stress concentration factors at all the lines need to be checked for thin-walled chords (2γ < 16.0). Under axial force in the chord and in-plane bending in the chord, only stress concentration factors at lines C and D needed to be considered. A comparison of stress concentration factors between SHS-SHS and SHS-CFSHS joints showed reductions of 10~26% and 14~31% in stress concentration factors in SHS-CFSHS joints under axial force in the brace and in-plane bending in the brace, respectively. In addition, it showed a general increase in stress concentration factors in SHS-CFSHS joints under axial force and in-plane bending in the chord. This reduction is attributed to the reduction in chord face deformation benefiting from the in-filled concrete. Meanwhile, the stress concentration factors caused by loads in the chord are much lower than those caused by loads in the brace. This work complements earlier studies on SHS-CFSHS T-joints under axial force.