Bridge scour

James ch 9
Causes of bridge failure

 Smith (1976, 1977) studied 143 bridge failures that occurred

throughout the world between 1847 and 1975. He grouped the
causes of failure into nine categories, as shown in Table 1.1.
 Almost half of the failures were due to floods. One flood can
wash away the foundations of a large number of bridges at the
same time, particularly small structures. Perhaps the table also
shows that engineers pay more attention to structural design than
they do to hydraulic considerations.
Causes of bridge failure
Bridge scour Introduction

 Bridge scour is the lowering of the streambed at bridge piers and abutments.
 Bridge scour is the largest cause of bridge failure in the United States and a major factor
that contributes to the total construction and maintenance costs of bridges in the United
States.
 Under prediction of design scour depths can result in costly bridge failures and possibly
loss of life, while over prediction can result in over design that may significantly affect
the construction costs.
 For these reasons, accurate prediction of scour depths anticipated at a bridge crossing
under design flow conditions is essential.
 Accurate prediction of design scour depths not only depends on adequate prediction
methods but on accurate estimates of flow and sediment parameters at the site. Accurate
estimates of the design flow and water depth and information on the type and properties
of the soil at the site are required.
Bridge scour and debris accumulation

 Because the openings of a bridge are usually less than the full width of the river, the
water accelerates as it approaches and passes through the waterways. Consequently the
velocity is higher than it would otherwise be, and this can cause scour and undermining
of the foundations of the bridge. The narrower the openings the larger the velocity, and
the finer the material the more easily it can be transported

 The accumulation of flood debris is one of the more unpredictable problems. Anything
from leaves to whole trees, and garden sheds to Dutch barns have been seen floating
downriver during flood. When debris becomes wedged across the waterway opening or
caught on a pier it reduces the flow area and increases the water velocity, which in turn
can increase scour. When combined with the increased
Hydraulic design of bridges

 One of the principal features of a successful bridge is an adequately sized opening,

which necessitates the determination of a suitable design flood. Table 1.2 may be of use
in selecting a suitable flood frequency, but the calculation of the flood magnitude is
covered in great detail elsewhere and will not be repeated here (NERC, 1975).
Bridge Scour – Definition and Importance

 When water flows through a bridge opening with sufficient velocity, the bed, in
general, will change in elevation. This change in elevation is more significant
near the abutments and piers. The magnitude of these changes depends on
many factors including the flow and sediment parameters, structure size and
shape, local and global channel characteristics, etc. A net loss of sediment at
the site is referred to as sediment scour or simply scour.
 Knowledge of the maximum scour that will occur during a design flow event
or, in the case of bridge piers founded in cohesive sediments, the maximum
scour that will occur during the life of the bridge is required for design. Under
prediction of these values could result in catastrophic failure and possible loss
of life while over prediction can result in over design of the structure, and thus
prove costly and economically inefficient. Accurate prediction of scour is,
therefore, of the utmost importance.
Types of Bridge Scour
 Sediment scour occurs when the amount of sediment removal from an
area is greater than the amount entering. For analysis purposes, it is
convenient to divide bridge scour into the following categories:
1) lateral migration
2) long term aggradation/degradation,
3) contraction scour, and
4) local structure-induced pier and abutment scour.
 The total scour depth is usually obtained from the sum of all components.
Selected methods are presented below. Therefore, general scour,
aggradation/degradation, contraction scour must be computed and the
bed elevation adjusted prior to calculating local and abutment scour.
 It must be remembered that all scour equations serve as approximations
and engineering judgment should be exercised.
Types of Bridge scour

 Lateral migration refers to mechanisms that create horizontal changes to the

waterway such as river meanders, tidal inlet instability, etc.
 Aggradation and degradation refer to the vertical raising or lowering of the
streambed due to changes taking place up and/or downstream of the bridge
(i.e., an overall lowering or rising of the stream bed).
 Contraction scour results from a reduction in the channel cross-section at the
bridge site. This reduction is usually attributed to the encroachment by the
bridge abutments and/or the presence of large bridge piers (large relative to the
channel cross section).
 Abutment scour results from the obstruction to the flow by the bridge
abutments and its prediction has been combined with the prediction of
contraction scour by some researchers. Local pier scour is likewise the result of
a flow obstruction, but one located within the flow field.
 Local Scour divided into clear water
scour and live-bed scour
 Local scour is divided into two different scour regimes that depend on the flow
and sediment conditions upstream of the structure. Clear-water scour refers to
the local scour that takes place under the conditions where sediment is not in
motion on a horizontal bed upstream of the structure.
 If sediment upstream of the structure is in motion, then the local scour is called
live-bed scour
 Clear-water scour occurs when the shear stress of the approaching flow is
insufficient to mobilize the bed material, and so no sediment is supplied to the
hole from upstream. Live-bed scour occurs when there is general movement of
bed sediment in the approach flow so that some of the scoured sediment is
continuously replaced.
Image of Local Scour hole at a bridge
pier after a flow event
Bridge Scour – Lateral Migration

 lateral migration refers to the bed elevation changes that result from lateral
instability of the waterway. This horizontal shifting is divided into two classes.
Bridge sites are often classified according to the nature of the flows
encountered. Sites that are far removed from the coasts where the flows are
not significantly influenced by astronomical tides are referred to as “riverine”
sites while those near the coast are called “tidal” sites. The flows at both
sites are unsteady, but in general, the time scales are significantly different
in the two cases. Additionally, tidal flows often reverse flow direction.
Bridge Scour Type 1 – Lateral Migration
 In the riverine environment, lateral migration refers to the natural
meandering process as illustrated in Fig. 2-1. Meanders in rivers result from
transverse oscillation of the thalweg (the deepest part of the channel) within
a straight channel. This oscillation initiates formation of self-perpetuating
bends in the stream. Although the literature contains relatively little research
regarding river meandering, observations indicate characteristics associated
with flow in bends. These characteristics include: (1) super-elevation of the
water at the outside of the bend, (2) strong downward currents causing
potential erosion at the outside of the bend, (3) scour at the outside and
deposition of sediment on the inside of the bend that moves the channel
thalweg toward the outside of the bend, and (4) a spiral secondary current
that directs the bottom current toward the inside of the bend. The overall
effect of these mechanisms is to accentuate existing bends in rivers
Bridge Scour Type 1 – Lateral Migration

 If a bridge crossing is located near one of these meanders, the horizontal

migration of the stream can result in an overall raising or lowering of the bed.
Therefore, this process is treated as a component of sediment scour.
Classification of Scour
 Contraction scour occurs as a result of the narrowing of a channel by a bridge and its
highway embankments, but this effect can be exacerbated by natural stream constrictions,
islands or sand banks, vegetation growth in the channel, debris accumulation, ice jams and
bends. Bends produce a non-uniform flow, so the contraction scour may be concentrated
on the outside of the bend, or possibly nearer the centre during flood when the thalweg
may shift.
 The effect of any constriction is to reduce the flow area and to increase the velocity. The
higher velocity results in an increased erosive force so that more bed material is removed
from the contracted reach than is transported into it from upstream, where there may be no
transport at all (clear-water conditions) or a lower transportation rate (live-bed conditions).
 However, as the bed elevation is lowered and a scour pit develops, the cross-sectional area
increases and the velocity falls again so that some form of equilibrium is reached. This can
be achieved either when the velocity in the contracted section falls below the critical value
required to initiate motion (clear-water scour) or when the rate of transport of material into
and out of the scour hole are equal (live-bed equilibrium scour).
Classification of scour
Clear water or Live bed?
 Note that typically the maximum local clear-water scour is about 10% larger
than the equilibrium local live-bed scour, clear water having a greater
sediment-carrying capacity. For this reason the formulae used to estimate scour
depth are classed as either clearwater or live-bed equations, and generally each
group of equations should be applied only to their respective condition.
 Conditions that favour clearwater scour are: channels with flat bed slopes
during low flows; a coarse bed material that is too large to be transported
(riprap is an artificial example); channels with natural vegetation or artificial
reinforcement where velocities are only high enough to cause scour near piers
and abutments; and flow over floodplains (assuming they are grassed).
 To determine whether the flow condition is clear-water or live-bed, Neill
(1968) suggested that equation 8.2 be applied to the unobstructed flow. If the
average velocity (V=Q/A m/s) in the unobstructed approach section is greater
than VS (m/s) the scour will be live bed.
Live bed or clear water scour?
Live bed or clear water scour?
Degradation
 The next classification in Table 8.2 is degradation, which can only occur with a live bed
 (V>VS). Degradation is not the result of bridge or embankment construction. It is more
widely defined as an adjustment of the bed elevation over a large area due to changes in
hydrology, hydraulics or sediment transport. This can be illustrated by the following
equation (Lane, 1955; Bryan et al. 1995):
Degradation or scour
Degradation

 change to one variable on either side of the equation will affect the stability of the
channel, and can lead to degradation or aggradation (deposition of sediment). While
aggradation sounds harmless, it should be remembered that this could reduce the size of
the bridge opening and make it more likely that debris will become trapped (perhaps
against the upstream soffit), so increasing scour potential.
 The significance of degradation scour to bridge design is that the engineer has to decide
whether the existing channel elevation is likely to be constant over the 100 year life of
the bridge, or whether it will change. If change is probable then it must be allowed for
when designing the waterway and foundations.
Bridge Scour Type 2 – Long term
Aggradation or Degradation
 Aggradation and degradation is associated with the overall vertical stability of
the bed.
 Long term aggradation and degradation refers to the change in the bed
elevation over time over the entire reach of the water body. For riverine
conditions, manmade or natural changes in the system may produce erosion
or deposition with time over the entire reach of the water body. Anything that
changes the sediment supply of a river reach can impact the bed elevation at
the bridge site
Evaluation of scour at a bridge/
cohesionless material
 The degradation scour depth (Δd) has to be evaluated as part of the design process, but
the two types of scour that are the direct result of bridge construction are contraction
and local scour, which can occur with either clearwater or live-bed conditions, as
described earlier and summarised in Table 8.2. Each condition may have its own set of
equations that should be used to estimate the scour depth
Contraction scour depth
 Contraction scour occurs as a result of the narrowing of a channel by a bridge and its
highway embankments, but this effect can be exacerbated by natural stream
constrictions, islands or sand banks, vegetation growth in the channel, debris
accumulation, ice jams and bends. Bends produce a non-uniform flow, so the
contraction scour may be concentrated on the outside of the bend, or possibly nearer the
centre during flood when the thalweg may shift. The effect of any constriction is to
reduce the flow area and to increase the velocity. The higher velocity results in an
increased erosive force so that more bed material is removed from the contracted reach
than is transported into it from upstream, where there may be no transport at all (clear-
water conditions) or a lower transportation rate (live-bed conditions).
 However, as the bed elevation is lowered and a scour pit develops, the cross-sectional
area increases and the velocity falls again so that some form of equilibrium is reached.
This can be achieved either when the velocity in the contracted section falls below the
critical value required to initiate motion (clear-water scour) or when the rate of transport
of material into and out of the scour hole are equal (live-bed equilibrium scour).
Contraction Scour
 Contraction scour occurs over a whole cross-section as a result of
the increased velocities arising from a narrowing of the channel by a
constriction such as a bridge. In general, the smaller the opening
ratio (M=q/Q or b/B) the larger the waterway velocity and the
greater the potential for scour. If the flow contracts from a wide
floodplain, considerable scour and bank failure can occur.
According to Blodgett (1984), during the first two or three years
after the construction of a bridge that forms a constriction bed levels
may be reduced by around 0.5m or more (‘several feet’). Relatively
severe constrictions may require regular maintenance for decades to
combat erosion. Needless to say, one way to reduce contraction
scour is to make the opening wider.
Bridge Scour Type 3 - Contraction Scour

 Contraction scour occurs when a channel’s cross-section is reduced by natural

or manmade features. Possible constrictions include the construction of long
causeways to reduce bridge lengths (and costs), the placement of large
(relative to the channel cross-section) piers in the channel, abutment
encroachment. The reduction of cross-sectional area results in an increase in
flow velocity. This may result in more sediment leaving than entering the area
and thus an overall lowering of the bed in the contracted area. This process is
known as contraction scour.
 For design flow conditions that have long durations, such as those created by
stormwater runoff in rivers and streams in relatively flat country, contraction
scour can reach near equilibrium depths. Equilibrium conditions exist when
the sediment leaving and entering a section of a stream are equal. Laursen’s
contraction scour prediction equations were developed for these conditions
Examples of River Channel Contraction
at bridge crossings
Live Bed Contraction Scour Equation
Live bed contraction scour
Fall Velocity of Sediment particle
 Clear water Contraction scour Equation
 The clear-water scour equation assumes that the upstream flow velocities are
less than the sediment critical velocity. The equation is
 Clear water Contraction scour Equation
 Laursen (1963) presented the following equation for the scour-critical velocity, Vs (m/s)
at which the bed material will start to move with clear-water scour:
 bridge opening (or on the overbank), b is the bottom width (m) of the bridge opening
less pier widths (or overbank width), and DM (=1.25D50 m) is the effective mean
diameter of the bed material in the bridge opening (or on the floodplain). Note that for a
single-span bridge Q2 will equal the total upstream discharge (Q1) unless there is flow
around or over the structure being analysed. With multispan bridges Q2 is that part of
the total flow passing through the opening under consideration.
Live bed contraction scour
Live bed contraction scour
Local Scour
 Local scour arises from the increased velocities and associated vortices as water accelerates
around the corners of abutments, piers and spur dykes.
 The flow pattern around a cylindrical pier is shown in Fig. 8.6. The approaching flow decelerates
as it nears the cylinder, coming to rest at the centre of the pier. The resulting stagnation pressure is
highest near the water surface where the approach velocity is greatest, and smaller lower down.
The downward pressure gradient at the pier face directs the flow downwards. Local pier scour
begins when the downflow velocity near the stagnation point is strong enough to overcome the
resistance to motion of
Scour at Pier
Scour at abutment
Total Scour Depth
 Degradation, contraction and local scour are additive, but only where the scour holes overlap
(Table 8.2). For instance, contraction scour may have to be added to pier or abutment scour to
get the total scour depth. However, pier scour and abutment scour would not be added unless
the two scour holes overlap. This usually has to be determined by drawing a cross-section
through the waterway and superimposing the scour depths. If the holes do overlap (see
equation 8.16) the resultant scour depth is often larger than the two components, but difficult to predict.
Nevertheless, as a general reminder:
Bridge Scour type 4- Local Scour
 When water flows around a structure located in or near an erodible sediment bed,
the increased forces on the sediment particles near the structure may remove
sediment from the vicinity of the structure. This erosion of sediment is referred to
as structure-induced sediment scour (local scour or pier scour). For cohesionless
sediments, the scour hole usually takes the form of an inverted cone with a slope
approximately equal to the angle of repose for the sediment in water. The deepest
depth of the scour hole is of greatest interest to the geotechnical/structural
engineer in the design of a new (or in the stability analysis of an existing)
structure. Therefore, scour hole depth, or more simply scour depth, refers to the
maximum depth within the scour hole. For a given steady flow velocity and water
depth, the scour depth increases with time until it reaches a maximum value
known as the equilibrium scour depth, ys.
 The integrity of the structure supported by the sediment is often highly dependent
on the depth of the scour hole. Much of the early scour research was for scour at
single circular piles. As a result, methods and equations for estimating scour at
more complex structures often employ of and build on this knowledge.
Schematic drawing of local scour
processes at a cylindrical pier

 Vortices, with near horizontal axes are formed at the

bed and near the water surface on the upstream edge
of the structure. These are referred to as the
“horseshoe” and “surface” vortices, respectively. The
term “horseshoe” is derived from the shape that the
vortex takes as it wraps around the pile and trails
downstream when viewed from above
Schematic drawing of local scour
processes at a cylindrical pier

 Vortices, with near

horizontal axes are formed
at the bed and near the
water surface on the
upstream edge of the
structure. These are
referred to as the
“horseshoe” and “surface”
vortices, respectively. The
term “horseshoe” is derived
from the shape that the
vortex takes as it wraps
around the pile and trails
downstream when viewed
from above
Equilibrium scour depth in steady flows
 There is usually a distinction made between local scour that occurs at flow
velocities less than and greater than the sediment critical velocity (the velocity
required to initiate sediment movement on a horizontal bed just upstream of the
structure). If the velocity is less than the sediment critical velocity, the scour is
known as “clear-water scour”. If the velocity is greater than the sediment
critical velocity, the scour is called “live-bed scour”. The following discussion is
limited to sediments that are cohesionless, such as sand. For sediments such as
silts, muds, clays, and rock, additional parameters must be considered to
account for the forces that bond the particles together.
 For most structures in a steady flow, the local scour depth varies in magnitude
around the structure. In this discussion the term local scour depth (or just local
scour) refers to the depth of the deepest point in the local scour hole.
 The method is able to predict the equilibrium scour depth for both clear-water
and live-bed conditions, both of which are relevant for design—piers in main
channel sections are vulnerable to live-bed scour during floods but piers on flood
plains may be exposed only to clear-water scour during occasional relatively low
intensity flows.
Equilibrium scour depth
 Equilibrium local scour depth depends on a number of fluid, sediment and
structure parameters. Eq. 3.1 expresses this mathematically as
Equilibrium scour depth

 The threshold between clear-water and live-bed scour occurs at an average

approach velocity (V0) equal to the critical entrainment velocity (Vc) above
which sediment movement occurs, supplying material to the scour hole
 The critical entrainment velocity is calculated for the D50 sediment size from
the Shields criterion using
Equilibrium scour depth

 The threshold
between clear-water
and live-bed scour
occurs at an average
Equilibrium scour depth

 The threshold
between clear-water
and live-bed scour
occurs at an average
Variation of scour equilibrium depth
with flow velocity
CLEAR WATER SCOUR DEPTH
CLEAR WATER SCOUR DEPTH
Live bed scour depth
Live bed scour depth for d50 < 20mm
Live bed scour depth for d50 > 20mm
 Scour depth evolution
 The actual scour depth depends on the duration of the scouring flow relative
to the development of the scour hole with time. Live-bed scour during floods
progresses rapidly and the equilibrium scour depth is representative (Melville
and Chiew 1999). Clear-water scour develops very slowly, however, and may
be intermittent for piers on flood plains.
 Notably, these equations are provided for reference to demonstrate the level
of conservatism when employing steady state derived scour predictions to an
unsteady process. At this time, the FDOT does not recommend employing
time dependent scour predictions for design.
Scour depth time to equilibrium
Scour depth time to equilibrium
Bridge scour countermeasures
 Riprap protection has the advantage over fixed protection
devices of being flexible and able to interact and move
with the bed sediments (Chiew and Lim 2000).
 The design of a riprap layer requires specification of the
rock size, the level of the layer relative to the original
bed, the thickness of the layer and the extent of the
layer. Many recommendations for riprap design have been
proposed, all based on data obtained from laboratory
experiments.
RIPRAP MODE OF FAILURE IN BRIDGE
PIERS PROTECTION
 For clear-water conditions, Chiew (1995) defined three modes of riprap
failure.
 Shear failure is the movement of the stones by the local shear stress
associated with the flow pattern around the pier.
 Winnowing failure is the removal of the underlying bed material through the
voids in the riprap layer.
 Edge failure arises from undermining of the stones by scour of the
unprotected bed at the periphery of the layer. The possibility of each of these
should be considered in the design.
SHEAR FAILURE

 Shear failure is prevented by ensuring that the riprap stones are large
enough to resist the scouring action.
 Chiew (1995) showed for circular piers that the approach velocity (V0)
at which pier scour commences is equal to 0.3 times the critical
velocity for scour without the pier (Vc).
 This is assumed to define the critical condition for entrainment of
riprap stones, provided it is adjusted to account for the influences of
the size of the riprap relative to the pier diameter and the approach
flow depth relative to the pier diameter by the introduction of
adjustment factors
SHEAR FAILURE PROTECTION RIPRAP SIZE
SHEAR FAILURE PROTECTION RIPRAP SIZE
Winnowing failure
 Winnowing failure by erosion of the underlying material can lead to
the development of a scour hole beneath the riprap layer, into which
the entire intact layer sinks (Chiew 1995).
 Winnowing can be prevented by providing more than one layer of
riprap.
 Recommendations for layer thickness (t) include t > 2*Dr50 by Neill
(1973) and by Lauchlan and Melville (2001), and t > 3*Dr50 by
Richardson et al. (1991).
Edge failure

 Edge failure can be countered by providing sufficient

thickness and extent of riprap cover. A thick layer is able
to maintain an armoured surface as the adjacent fine
material is eroded.
 The further the riprap extends beyond the pier, the less
pronounced is the scouring effect produced by the pier on
the adjacent bed. Neill (1973) recommended an extent of
1.5D in all directions from the face of the pier;
BRIDGE SCOUR (Julien ch. 14 section
14.4 page 402
 River engineers are concerned with bridge crossings in regard to: (1) the
careful selection of the bridge site to minimize the total bridge costs and (2)
the protection against possible structural failure from scour undermining the
roadway embankments and piers. River crossings should preferably be located
in straight river reaches or in stable bends without lateral migration. Sites
with narrow floodplain width, rock outcrops, or high bluffs are good locations
for bridge crossings. Protecting embankments and piers against scour requires
consideration of: (1) general scour (Section 14.4.1); (2) contraction scour
(Section 14.4.2); (3) abutment scour (Section 14.4.3); and (4) pier scour
(Section 14.4.4). The total scour depth is usually obtained from the sum of all
components. Selected methods are presented below, and a detailed
treatment of scour at bridges can be found in Richardson and Davis (2001).
General scour

 Live-bed scour occurs when the upstream sediment transport can be

transported into the scour hole. Conversely, clearwater scour refers to
conditions without bed-sediment transport. When general scour is expected
to be significant, as sketched in Figure 14.13, it is often advisable to
construct a grade-control structure downstream of the bridge crossing. The
purpose of the structure is to control the bed elevation at the bridge site and
protect the abutment and piers
Contraction scour
CONTRACTION SCOUR DEPTH –
GRAPHICAL ESTIMATION
 The contraction
scour depth Δz is
obtained graphically
as shown in Figure
14.14 from the
difference in flow
depth between the
two interception
points h1(q1, qs1)
and h2(q2, qs2):
Δz=h2 −h1: (14.11)
The contracted scour
depth represents an
average over the
channel width and
symmetry is assumed
in the calculation.
Abutment scour

 Abutments and spur dikes can have

different shapes and angles to the flow. As
sketched in Figure 14.15, the tip of an
earth and rockfill abutment will generally
have a spill-through shape when compared
with sheet piles standing as vertical walls.
The abutment scour depth depends on the
amount of flow intercepted by the bridge
abutments. The equilibrium scour depth for
local live-bed scour in sand is
Abutment and contractin scour shape
and location
PIER SCOUR

 Pier scour is induced by the swirling flow around the pier (Figure 14.16a). The
flow moves downward on the front side of the pier and swirls around both
sides of the base of the pier in the shape of a horseshoe. The horseshoe
vortex removes bed material away from the base region in front of and along
the side of the pier. The vortex strength decreases as the depth of scour
increases. The equilibrium scour depth is reached when the transport rates
entering and leaving the scour hole are equal.
Pier scour
PIER SCOUR
General Procedure for calculating scour depth
General Procedure for calculating scour depth