International Journal of Science and Advanced Technology (ISSN 2221-8386) http://www.ijsat.

com

Volume 3 No 7 July 2013

Cable Stayed Bridge

Partha Pratim Roy
B. E. (Civil); M. E. (Structure) Vice President (Technical), ADAPT International Kolkata, West Bengal, India pproy76@gmail.com

Abstract - This paper describes Basics, Important Aspects, Types and Few Notable Examples of Cable Stayed Bridges.

I. ABOUT CABLE STAYED BRIDGES A cable-stayed bridge, one of the most modern bridges, consists of a continuous strong beam (girder) with one or more pillars or towers in the middle. A typical cable-stayed bridge is a continuous girder with one or two towers erected above piers in the middle of the span. From these piers, cables are attached diagonally to the girder to provide additional support. Cable-stayed bridges have a low centre of gravity which makes them strong against earthquakes, but at the same time makes them vulnerable to uneven sinking of the ground. Cables are stretched diagonally between these pillars or towers and the beam. These cables support the beam and are anchored in the tower. Cables are extremely well suited for axial tension, however are weak against compression and bending forces. As a result, long span cable stayed bridges, though strong under normal traffic loads, are vulnerable to the forces of winds. Special measures are taken to assure that the bridge does not vibrate or sway under heavy winds. Because the only part of the structure that extends above the road is the towers and cables, cable stayed bridges have a simple and elegant look. IMPORTANT ASPECTS FOR BUILDING A CABLE STAYED BRIDGE A. Mathematical and Experimental Factors: While finalizing the Geometry of a Cable Stayed Bridge, engineers mathematically need to think of many things, like: Horizontal distance from tower to point of attachment Height of point of attachment above bridge level Stretched length of cable Angle between cable and tower II.

The tower of the bridge forms the vertical side of the right triangle. The distance between the points of attachment of preceding cables on the tower should be equal. Likewise, the points of attachment of the cables on the beam of the span should be equidistant. One can calculate the length of the remaining cables after the first cable has been installed by applying the proportionality concept or the Pythagorean theorem. When building a cable-stayed bridge, to figure out how long the cables need to be, engineers either use scale drawings or Pythagoras and trigonometry to find the required length of cable for each section and the angle between the cable and the vertical. Laboratory experiments needs to be conducted for the Cables to see how its stretch varies with the angle to the vertical. This experiment also determines how much a length of cable stretches when it supports a mass. B. Tension and Compression Different components of Cable Stayed Bridge takes care of Tension and Compression. The tower is responsible for absorbing and dealing with compression forces. Tension occurs along the cable lines. This works well because a moving load is not applied evenly across the bridge, and as it moves one set or the other of the diagonals will find itself in tension.

Figure 1. Tension and Compression Elements

52

International Journal of Science and Advanced Technology (ISSN 2221-8386) http://www.ijsat.com C. Shape of the Bridge Triangles are one of the shapes used by the attachment of the cables and the beam this shape is used because of its ability to transfer the tension as the moving load goes across the bridge.

Volume 3 No 7 July 2013

For medium length spans between 500 and 2,800 feet, cable-stayed is fast becoming the bridge of choice. Cable Stayed Bridges are having modern looking geometric shapes which are eye pleasing as well as necessary for strength. Lastly it is also a cost effective solution. III. TYPES OF CABLE STAYED BRIDGES Geometrical differences of Cable Stayed Bridges are based on how the cables are attached to the pillars. There are two major types: A. Parallel Attachment Design or HARP Design In this case Cables are made nearly parallel by having the height of attachment on the pillar equals to the distance from the pillar along the roadway as shown below:

Figure 2. Common Shapes of Cable Stayed Bridges

In this bridge, the distance of the cable up the tower is equal to the distance from the tower to connection point on the beam and is a 90 degree angle. A rectangle is attached at the convergence point of the beam and tower for stability. The Triangulated bracing between the cables reduces the amplitude of oscillations. D. Advantages of Cable-Stayed Bridges Following are the major advantages of a Cable Stayed Bridge over other conventional types of bridges. Cable uses a single support only Well-balanced in terms of taking care of Tension and Compression Cables can be fabricated separately Horizontal loads are contained within the structure o Ideal for use when the river banks are fragile like banks with alluvial mud
Figure 3. HARP Shape Design

B. Radial attachment design or FAN Design For this type the cables all connect to or pass over the top of the pillar as shown below:

The cables disperse a load across more area easily o Cables from nodes on tower to road is variant of a triangle
Figure 4. FAN Shape Design

Greater inherent rigidity of the triangulated cablestayed bridges

Civil engineers need to use a combination of geometric shapes to build the strongest structures, hence it is extremely important for engineers to carry out the technical calculations necessary to plan a bridge project. Also stage construction analysis for with proper planning of construction is essential. If the sequence and the specifications are not correct, the bridge could collapse. 53

C. Notable cable-stayed bridges Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge: the longest cable-stayed bridge in the Western Hemisphere, spanning the Cooper River in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. Bandra Worli Sea-Link: The new 5.6 kilometres (3 mi) 8-lane twin carriageway cable-stayed bridge of the sea-link project and the West Island Freeway system, opened on June 30, 2009, connects Greater Mumbai, India to the western suburbs.

International Journal of Science and Advanced Technology (ISSN 2221-8386) http://www.ijsat.com Cable Bridge: The first cable-stayed bridge in the United States, crosses the Columbia River and connects Pasco, Washington to Kennewick, Washington, USA. Centennial Bridge: a six-lane vehicular bridge that crosses the Panama Canal with a total length of 1.05 km (3,451 ft). Millennium Bridge: In Denver, USA, a 130 foot (40 m) long pedestrian bridge which won the Gold Award in 2003 from the New York Association of Consulting Engineers. The bridge is a focal point of the film "Nowhereland" starring Eddie Murphy. Greenville Bridge: The third longest cable-stayed bridge main span, 1,378-foot (420 m), in the United States, and fourth longest in North America, crossing the Mississippi River between Lake Village, Arkansas and Greenville, Mississippi. Kap Shui Mun Bridge carries both road and railway traffic, with a main span of 430 metres and an overall length of 1323 metres, connecting Ma Wan and Lantau Island in Hong Kong as part of the Lantau Link serving Hong Kong International Airport. Indiano Bridge over the Arno River in Florence, Italy, 1978, is the first earth-anchored cable-stayed steel bridge in the world with central planes of cables, single inclined masts, vented deck. Central span of 210 m. Luling Bridge over the Mississippi River in Destrehan, Louisiana; it was the first cable-stayed bridge in the United States carrying an interstate highway Megyeri Bridge over the Danube in Budapest, Hungary, opened in 2008 Millau Viaduct is the bridge with the tallest piers in the world: 341 metres tall (1,118 ft) and roadway 270 metres high (886 ft), spanning the Tarn River in France. With a total length of 2460 m and seven towers, it also has the longest cable-stayed suspended deck in the world. New Railroad Bridge: the first bridge in Europe to use cable-stayed girder system in the railroad industry, connects two banks of Sava river in Belgrade, Serbia. North Avenue Bridge over the Chicago River in Chicago, Illinois, USA utilizes cable-stayed elements to avoid the full-size abutments required for a pure suspension bridge, while providing additional support via a suspension cable to minimize the height of the bridge's support towers. Nov Most: The world's longest cable-stayed bridge in category with one pylon and with one cable-stayed plane, spanning Danube river in Bratislava, Slovakia. The main span is 303 metres, total length 430.8 metres. The only member of World Federation of Great Towers that is primarily used as a bridge. It houses a flying-saucer restaurant at the top of pylon 85 metres high.

Volume 3 No 7 July 2013

John O'Connell Bridge over the Sitka Channel, between Japonski Island and Baranof Island in Sitka, Alaska, 1972. Octavio Frias de Oliveira bridge over the Pinheiros River in So Paulo, Brazil 2008. It has a 138 metres (450 ft)-high pylon under which two stayed roads cross each other turning 90 to the opposite bank of the river. Oresund Bridge, a combined two-track rail and four-lane road bridge with a main span of 490 metres and a total length of 7.85 km, crossing the resund strait between Malm, Sweden and the Danish Capital Region. Penang Bridge in Malaysia connects Penang island with the Malay Peninsula, with its longest span measuring 225 m. Pont de Normandie across the Seine in Normandy, France - briefly the world's longest cable stayed bridge. Rande Bridge in Spain near Vigo is the highway cable stayed bridge with the longest and slenderest span in the world at the time of construction (1977). Three long spans of 148 m + 400m + 148 m. Pylons in concrete, girder in composite steelconcrete. Rama IX Bridge, Bangkok, Thailand 450 m main span, 6 traffic lanes, completed 1987, at that date the second longest centre span in the world. Rio-Antirio bridge with a total length of 2880 m and four towers, this is the bridge with the second longest cable-stayed suspended deck (2258 m long) in the world, spanning the Gulf of Corinth near Patra, Greece. Second Severn Crossing between England and Wales is 3.186 miles (5.127 km) miles long, consisting of a single central navigation span over the "Shoots" channel and approach viaducts on either side. Skybridge is the world's longest transit-only bridge, spanning the Fraser River between New Westminster and Surrey, BC, Canada. Sundial Bridge is an award-winning single spar pedestrian bridge spanning the Sacramento River in Redding, California. Sunshine Skyway Bridge is the world's longest bridge with a cable-stayed main span; carries I-275 across Tampa Bay south of St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The very similar looking Oresund bridge is slightly shorter but has a longer main span. Suramadu Bridge in Indonesia is the longest cablestayed bridge in Southeast Asia and Indonesia. It connects the city of Surabaya in Java island with the island of Madura. Its main span is 818 metres long. Surgut Bridge is the longest one-tower cable-stayed bridge in the world, crossing the Ob River in Siberia. Sutong Bridge spans the Yangtze River Delta in eastern China. It has the longest span of any cable-

54

International Journal of Science and Advanced Technology (ISSN 2221-8386) http://www.ijsat.com stayed bridge at 1,088 metres (3,570 ft), surpassing Japan's Tatara Bridge for the world's longest cablestay main span, but its overall length is shorter than the Sunshine Skyway Bridge in the United States. Tatara Bridge has the second largest span of any cable-stayed bridge at 890 metres (2,920 ft), part of a series of bridges connecting Honsh and Shikoku in Japan. Ting Kau Bridge is the world's first major four-span (three towers) cable-stayed bridge, forming part of the road network connecting Hong Kong International Airport to other parts of Hong Kong, China. Vasco da Gama Bridge in Lisbon, Portugal is the longest bridge in Europe, with a total length of 17.2 km (10.7 mi), including 0.829 km (0.5 mi) for the main bridge, 11.5 km (7.1 mi) in viaducts, and 4.8 km (3.0 mi) in extension roads. Veterans' Glass City Skyway in Toledo, Ohio has a total length of 8,800 feet (2,682 m). The bridge is the most expensive project ever undertaken by the Ohio Department of Transportation(ODOT), costing approximately US$237 million. It carries six lanes of Interstate 280 across the Maumee River. Vidyasagar Setu (2nd Hooghly Bridge) in Kolkata, West Bengal, India is the longest cable-stayed bridge in the Indian subcontinent, with the main span measuring 457.2 m (1,500 ft) and total length being 823 m (2,700 ft). Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge is the world's widest cable-stayed bridge; carries 10 lanes of Interstate 93 over the Charles River in Boston, Massachusetts. It is also the first cable-stayed bridge with an asymmetrical deck design. Zhivopisny Bridge in Moscow, Russia, is the highest cable-stayed bridge in Europe.

Volume 3 No 7 July 2013

Zarate-Brazo Largo Bridges' over the Paran Guaz and Paran de las Palmas Rivers in Argentina (1977). They are the two first road and railway long span cable-stayed steel bridges in the world. Spans: 110 m + 330m + 110 m.

Partha Pratim Roy (born 1976), holds a Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering and a Masters degree in Structural Engineering from The Bengal Engineering and Science University, Kolkata, a premier and one of the oldest institutes in India. He has more than 16 years of global experience in various A/E/C software solutions. He presently handles Global Technical Support and is also responsible for all Training and Pre/Post Sales Technical matters for Afro-Asia Pacific region of ADAPT International. He has earlier worked in key positions with global responsibilities in Research Engineers/Netguru Inc and Bentley Systems Inc. He is currently perusing his doctoral works in Assam Engineering College, Guwahati University, under the guidance of Dr. Jayanta Pathak. His topic of research is A Study of Various Parameters affecting Optimal Design of Multi-Span Cable Stayed Bridge. Some of his papers were published in Indian Road Congress Magazine (on High Speed Corridor Projects); CADD-Zoom magazine (on Product Review: STAAD.Pro 2005); Civil Engineering & Construction magazine ( on Recent Developments of Structural Design Modules in STAAD); ACE Update (on Structural Analysis Software for Concrete Building Design) and various we forums like IRCON International etc.

55