Keynotes on bridges in Spain since the mid-1980's

2005

2007

This work presents two proposals for spanning the Galician rías. The rías are the equivalent to the Scottish firths or the Scandinavian fiords, thus long-span bridges are required to communicate both sides of that physical barrier. Additionally, the multidisciplinary approach applied in the design of these proposals that have been developed in the last decade by the Structural Mechanics Research Group is explained.

Handbook of International Bridge Engineering, 2013

The project includes a cable-stayed bridge and two approach viaducts: one on the Chaco side on National Route 16 and another one on the Corrientes side on National Route 12 (Figure 3.22). Those structures are 2000 m long (1666 m over water) and 8.3 m wide, with one lane in each direction. The vertical navigation clearance is 35 m. The required horizontal clearance is 200 m. The cable-stayed bridge comprises three spans (163 m + 245 m + 163 m). It is composed of two 225 m long suspended structures, placed symmetrically along the main pylons axes, which are 245 m apart. A simply supported span of 20 m links these two structures to form the main span of 245 m. This suspended span reduces the effect of deflections on the two main structures. Each main pylon is a W-shaped frame that rests on a pile cap for its foundation. A set of eight stays completes each main 83 m high pylon. The cross section is a two-box girder. The deck is completed with precast transverse slabs, 6.9 m long and 2 m wide, supported on the main beams. When the deck was finished, the transverse beams were prestressed. The original stays were of the locked coil type, but they had to be replaced after 25 years of service. The longitudinal beams of 3.5 m deep were prestressed. The approach viaducts over the river are composed of nine spans of 82.6 m each on the Chaco side, and three spans of 82.6 m each on the Corrientes side. They were built by the balanced cantilever method with precast segments 4.1 m long and 2 m deep at center span and 4.5 m deep over the supports. The overall deck width is 11.3 m, carrying two 3.65 m wide lanes, narrow emergency shoulders of 0.50 m and pedestrian sidewalks 1.5 m wide. The piers of the approach viaducts are constant deep box sections and were built by the sliding formwork method. The foundations were made using 1.8 m diameter bored piles with variable lengths between 38 m and 60 m, and with preloading cells, they are clamped by penetration into the hard clay stratum. At around 20 years of service, the replacement of all the stays was required. Construction works were carried out by Freyssinet SA (Spain) in 1995. Parallel strands stays were installed. The link between both cities, with only two lanes, has proven to be insufficient for the traffic, which has been ever-growing since its construction. The construction of a new bridge is now under consideration. Construction work began in August of 1968 by the initiative of the governments of the provinces involved: Corrientes, Chaco, and Formosa. The owner was DNV, who called for international bids in 1965.

History of Construction Cultures, 2021

The great railway bridges built in the 19th century are magnificent examples of the rise of civil engineering, and especially of the development of iron structures. Over time, however, the increase in railwayrolling stock complexity and weight made some structures obsolete, and their replacement became indispensable during the 20th century. Such is the case of some bridges built in a section of the Spanish Ciudad Real-Badajoz railway line inaugurated in 1865, which crossed watercourses as important as the Guadiana River, the Aljucén River or the Gévora River. At two different times, during the 1920s and 1950s, the original iron lattice girder bridges were replaced by new concrete structures built in the same places. This study analyzes those structures, both old and new, and especially how the replacement construction was carried out without interrupting railservices. The original construction projects and the new bridges, some historic photographs of the replacementwork, which include piers, formwork, arches and decks and dismantling of obsolete iron girders, are thus studied. The study provides evidence of their importance not only as territorial landmarks or major structures but also as elements with a construction history remarkable and extremely interesting in itself. Lastly, the destiny of the obsolete iron structures, sale for scrap, contributes to the discussion of the future of outdated bridges of our time

Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 2020

IABSE Symposium, Venice 2010: Large Structures and Infrastructures for Environmentally Constrained and Urbanised Areas, 2010

This paper introduces two singular structures designed in the city of San Sebastian. The singularity of these bridges is based not on its dimensions or technical features, but in the way they adapt its design to local conditions. The 6th bridge over the Urumea River will be finished in 2010. This skewed urban bridge is 90 m long, with three spans of approx. 30 m, and 22 m wide. The bridge replaces an existing steel structure with historical values which is reused as a footbridge in a green area. It crosses the river parallel to the existing railway bridge, with associated visual and noise disturbances for the area. The new bridge in the area of Txomin-Enea over the Urumea River adapts to the different characteristics of the river banks. As the left bank will be a newly urbanized area with a green park following the river with walking and cycling paths. The structure uses two spans of 42 and 18 m, with the main span over the river and the side span over the new green area.

International Conference on Road and Rail Infrastructure

Bridges have evolved over time from the simplest forms made from materials found in nature – wood and stone - to the complex shapes of today, made of concrete, steel, steel-concrete, and composite materials. If in the past the large dimensions of an obstacle impeded building a bridge, today this problem can be solved by choosing suitable materials, an advantageous structural system, and an erection method that favors the chosen solutions. The composite superstructures made of steel-concrete have started to be used more often in the construction of bridges due to their advantages. The scope of this paper is to analyze the evolution of road bridges with steel-concrete composite superstructure. There can be distinguished mainly 4 stages in the evolution of these types of structures. In the first two stages during 1850-1925 the connection between concrete and steel was achieved by the adhesion between the contact surfaces of the two materials. Starting with 1932 (stage III), a connectio...

British standard for civil engineering

2008

New Solutions for our Society (Abstracts Book 314 pages + CD-ROM full papers 1196 pages), 2008