Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 Science and Technology 133
Peei-ieviewed by inleinalional ex-
peils and accepled foi publicalion by S! !diloiial Boaid Papei ieceived: 1uly 4, 2OO6 Papei accepled: 1an 24, 2OO7 Summary Launching ganliies aie fiequenlly used in lhe eieclion of piecasl segmenlal and -beam biidges, while movable shulleiing syslems (MSS) aie used foi in silu span-by-span and balanced-canlilevei consliuclion. The use of launching unils is lheiefoie fiequenl in mosl lypes of medium-span, piesliessed conciele biidges. Launching ganliies and MSS aie complex and delicale sliucluies. They iesisl huge loads duiing biidge eieclion and oveilake long spans duiing self-launching. They aie lighli.e. designed foi high sliess levels in diffeienl load and suppoil condilions, which make lhem pione lo inslabilily. And lhey aie ieused many limes, on diffeienl pio|ecls and by diffeienl ciews. As a mallei of facl, a numbei of launching unils have collapsed in iecenl yeais, wilh many falalilies and exlieme delays on lhe pio|ecl schedule. As a conse- quence, lhe launching unils aie almosl always leased oi puichased on lhe basis of sliingenl lechnical specificalions, and lheii design is sub|ecled lo independenl checking. Design and opeialional failuies delecled by lhe aulhoi wilhin numeious inde- pendenl design check assignmenls aie discussed in lhe papei and iecommen- dalions and suggeslions aie piovided lo pievenl failuies and assuie adequale iobuslness of launching unils. Owing lo lhe legal pioceedings suiiounding such evenls, only geneial causes of collapse aie discussed in lhis papei and no pho- logiaphs of ganliy collapses aie included, and lhe phologiaphs do nol iefei lo collapsed unils. Kcywnrds: launching ganliies; movable shulleiing syslems; slabilily of lempoiaiy sliucluies; iobuslness of lempoiaiy sliucluies; biidge consliuclion equipmenl. be easy lo lianspoil, assemble, and opeiale, i.e. as lighl as possible, which diclales lhe use of high-slienglh sleel and designing foi high sliess levels undei many diffeienl load and suppoil condilions. As a consequence, launching unils aie slendei and pione lo inslabilily. Oveiluining, unconliolled sliding, un- sealing fiom suppoils and similai mac- ioscopic evenls aie simple lo conliol. Moie complex foims of inslabilily such as oul-of-plane buckling can be assessed only wilh numeiical analysis. The conceplual schemes of launching unils aie nol many |1]. The lighl gan- liies foi piecasl beams compiise lwo paiallel liusses wilh liiangulai cioss- seclion. Two winch-liolleys iun along lhe uppei choids wilh lhe beam sus- pended undeinealh and no liansveise biacing is inslalled belween lhe liusses (Iig. 1). The spans aie shoil, lhe design load is low, and lhe winch-liolleys Rnbustncss and Stability nf Launching Gantrics and Mnvablc Shuttcring Systcms ~ Lcssnns Lcarncd Intrnductinn Consliuclion of piesliessed conciele biidges spanning fiom 3O lo 12O14O m is moslly based on lhe use of self- launching machines. Allhough lhe lechnological iequiiemenls aie dif- feienl, lhe lwo families of launching unilslaunching ganliies foi piecasl segmenlal consliuclion and movable shulleiing syslems (MSS) foi in silu casling, aie so similai lhal unils oiigi- nally conceived foi in silu casling aie oflen iecycled foi segmenl eieclion and vice veisa. Launching ganliies and MSS aie complex and delicale sliucluies. They iesisl huge loadsoflen lhe enliie span weighl, and have full self-launch capabilily undei lhe same consliainls lhal lhe obslacle lo oveipass exeils on lhe peimanenl sliucluie. They musl fil plan and veilical cuivaluies bolh in lhe supeisliucluie lo be eiecled and in lhe suppoiling pieis. Also, lhey musl Marcn Rnsignnli Chief Biidge !ngineei, HNTB Coipoialion Seallle, WA \SA 134 Science and Technology Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 opeiale fai fiom each olhei, so lhal lhese unils aie usually veiy lighl and defoimable. A ganliy foi span-by-span eieclion woiks on similai spans bul lhe design load is much highei as lhe unil sus- lains lhe enliie span duiing segmenl assembly. The geneial aiiangemenl of an MSS foi span-by-span casling is similai; wilh lhe span eilhei suspended fiom (uppei-beam unils) oi suppoiled on (lowei-beam unils) a self-launch- ing fiame. The lwin-uppei-beam unils compiise lwo lhiee-dimensional (3D) liusses, box-giideis, oi paiied -giideis biaced lo each olhei only al lhe ends oi lolally unbiaced. ndependenl 3D liusses oi paiied -giideis aie also used in lhe lwin-lowei-beam unils (Iig. 2) because lhe lwo halves of lhe casling cell musl be sepaialed duiing launch- ing. A unil of lhis lype collapsed in laly in lhe eighlies because of bieak- ing of a ielaining cable duiing down- hill launching on iollei beaiings. The mosl compacl uppei-beam unils have a cenlial beam compiising lwo paiied -giideis. n lhe case of lighl plan cuivaluies, lhe caiiying beam can be divided inlo lwo seclionslhe main giidei and a fionl suppoil beam lhal suslains lhe fionl end of lhe main giidei duiing launching, connecled by a hydiaulic luinlable as in Iig. 3. This solulion is also adopled wilh lhe lwin- uppei-liuss unils, allhough suslain- ing lwo dislanl liusses wilh a cenlial suppoil beam may cause pioblems of loision slabilily. A cuslom-made unil of lhis lallei lype collapsed in Ohio in lhe yeai 2OO4, killing foui woikeis. Collapse was appaienlly caused by impiopei anchoiing of a suppoil leg lo lhe piei cap. Lowei launching beams aie also used lo suslain lhe fionl liolley of lhe wheeled span caiiieis in lhe lasl slages of place- menl as in Iig. 4. The caiiiei moves foiwaid along lhe suppoil beam unlil ieaching lhe loweiing localion, and lhe suppoil beam is lhen launched lo lhe nexl span lo cleai lhe aiea undei lhe caiiiei foi span loweiing. Single- and lwin-uppei-beam ganliies foi balanced-canlilevei piecasl segmen lal eieclion opeiale on much longei spansa slably anchoied lwin-uppei- liuss unil of lhis lype was deslioyed in laly in lhe yeai 2OO6 by lhe collapse of lhe segmenlal span being eiecled. Similai unils aie also used lo caiiy lwo casling cells foi in silu casling as in Iig. 5. The casling cell can lheiefoie be lwice as long as lhal of convenlional foim liavelleis, and no lempoiaiy piei- lock syslems aie necessaiy foi deck slabilizalion duiing consliuclion, and having access lo lhe woik localions, casling lhe piei-head segmenls, and liansfeiiing lhe casling cells lo lhe nexl span, aie all facililaled. The design Iig. 2. Twin-lowcr-bcan MSS (author) Iig. 3. IivotcJ singlc-uppcr-bcan gantry (courtcsy D1A1) Iig. 4. VhcclcJ span carricr with lowcr support bcan (author) Iig. 1. Twin-uppcr-truss gantry jor prccast bcans (courtcsy Contcc) Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 Science and Technology 135 load of lhese unils is smallei lhan lhe one foi span-by-span consliuclion, as lhe deck segmenls aie handled indi- vidually oi in paiis. The design-gov- eining load condilion is lhe negalive bending fiom lhe fionl canlilevei so lhal vaiying-deplh unils aie used fie- quenlly. Symmeliical slays devialed by an exlension lowei of lhe main legs solve lhe mosl ciilical cases. Dcsign Lnads nf Launching Lnits The design loads of an MSS aie classi- fied inlo fixed and vaiying loads. Iixed loads include lhe self-weighl and lhe supeiimposed dead load. \aiying loads include lhe weighl of lhe fiesh conciele and lhe ieinfoicing cage, lhe load iedisliibulion al lhe applicalion of piesliess, lhe aclions liansfeiied by lifling devices caiiied by lhe unil, lhe aclions of snow and wind, and lhe lheimal vaiialions. n lhe unils foi balanced-canlilevei consliuclion lhal iesliain lhe deck againsl oveiluining (Iig. 5), vaiying loads also include lhe iesliainl foices of segmenl unbalance. The load combinalions foi a launch- ing ganliy aie moie complex because of lhe dynamic naluie of loading. These unils aie giouped inlo classes, and lhe classificalion goveins lhe load magnificalion faclois lo be used in lhe load combinalions. The class of a unil is deleimined on lhe basis of lhe numbei of load cycles and lhe load- ing level, and since mosl of load cycles lake place al lhe load capacily of lhe unil, lhe speclial facloi is usually high. Specific classificalions also apply foi lhe mechanical componenls. The load condilions include iegulai foices lhal acl duiing noimal opeia- lions, occasional foices in lhe unil in seivice, exceplional foices bolh in seiv- ice and oul-of-seivice (non-opeialing anchoied unil) condilions, and special foices lhal aiise duiing assembly oi locally. The iegulai foices aie lhe dead load, lhe seivice load, and lhe ineilial foices geneialed by inlenlional move- menls and oscillalions of load. The occasional foices aie lhe impacls of lhe wheels of lhe winch-liolleys againsl lhe iunways, wind, snow, ice, and lhei- mal diffeiences. These unils aie ieused many limes and lhe meleoiological loads aie lheiefoie deleimined wilh- oul ieduclions in ielalion lo lhe woik duialion. The load combinalions dis- linguish noimal opeialions and oul- of-seivice wind condilions. Ganliies of medium lenglh aie unlikely lo suslain damage fiom wind-induced vibialions, and launching is always avoided in lhe piesence of sliong wind. The exceplional foices aie lhe oul- of-seivice wind, lhe lesl load, impacls againsl lhe buffeis al lhe end of lhe winch-liolley iunways, and lhe design- level eailhquake. mpacls againsl buffeis aie oflen disiegaided because of lhe low velocily of lhe winch-liol- leys, piovided lhal lhe iunways aie equipped wilh end-of-slioke swilches lhal slop lhe movemenl. !nd-of-slioke buffeis aie indispensable wheie lhe deck has a longiludinal giadienl, as lhe main liusses follow lhe giadienl and lhe iunways aie lheiefoie inclined planes. The loads aie giouped inlo lhiee load condilions: 1oaJ ConJition I is lhe noimal opeialional condilion wilh iegulai foices. l combines lhe dead load and lhe seivice load inclusive calion. These loads aie mulliplied by lhe load calion facloi iesulling fiom calion. 1oaJ ConJition II is lhe opeialional condilion in lhe piesence of occasional foices. l combines lhe aclions of Condilion wilh wind in seivice, snow oi ice, and lheimal diffeiences. The occasional loads aie nol mulliplied by lhe load calion facloi. f lhe design wind is sliong, lhe longiludinal calion facloi can diffei fiom lhe value foi Condilion , as lhe aclion of wind affecls lhe slailing and biaking limes of lhe winch-liolleys. 1oaJ ConJition III is lhe aclion of ed by Iig. 5. Twin-uppcr-bcan MSS jor balanccJ-cantilcvcr construction (courtcsy Rocro Thysscnkrupp) 136 Science and Technology Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 lhe following combinalions: dead load and oul-of-seivice wind; dead load, seivice load, and impacls againsl lhe end-of-slioke buffeis; dead load, seivice load, and design- level eailhquake; and assembly and dismanlling opeialions. Allhough conceplually similai lo assembly and dismanlling, self-launching is geneially assessed in Condilion because of lhe highei fiequency of lhese opeialions. The design codes foi launching unils piesciibe diffeienl allowable sliesses foi lhe lhiee load condilions. When a limil-slale appioach is adopled foi design, bolh seiviceabilily limil slales (SLS) and ullimale limil slales (\LS) aie assessed. The SLS coiiesponds lo lhe loss of funclionalily of lhe ganliy, wheieas lhe \LS is ielaled lo ciilical condilions such as iigid equilibiium, iupluie of conneclions, yielding of sliucluial elemenls, and inslabilily. Some codes assess inslabilily like any olhei \LS condilion, allhough oul- of-plane buckling is a sudden evenl devoid of posl-ciilical domain and lhe ciilical load is influenced by geo- meliy impeifeclions lhal aie difficull lo delecl. n lhe daily design piaclice, lheiefoie, oul-of-plane buckling of launching unils is assessed wilh moie conseivalive load faclois, usually C C 1 3 2 5 , . n spile of lhal, oul-of- plane buckling of an oveiloaded sup- poil leg iecenlly led lo lhe loss of a 148 m long, 12,3 MN heavy launching unil, wilh one woikei killed. Instability, Structural Mndclling, and Asscssmcnt with Lnad Tcsting The buckling modes of a sliucluie depend on lhe load. n a launching ganliy lhe load shifls along lhe liusses duiing placemenl, and lhe liusses shifl on lhe piei suppoils duiing launching. nslabilily of a launching unil is lheie- foie assessed foi diffeienl posilions and eccenliicilies of lhe seivice load and of lhe unil ilself duiing launching. So complex sliucluies (geneially also lhe cioss-seclion of choids and diago- nals vaiies along lhe unil) cannol be assessed wilh bibliogiaphic values foi lhe ciilical load. nslabilily is analysed wilh numeiical models of lhe enliie unil inclusive of main liusses, winch- liolleys if capable of exeiling a laleial iesliainl aclion belween lhe liusses, and suppoil ciossbeams and loweis. Lineai buckling analysis is used lo deleimine lhe inslabilily modes undei a specified sel of loads lhiough lhe solulion of lhe geneialised eigenvalue pioblem K C r O wheieKis lhe mechanical sliffness ma liix, C r is lhe P-della sliffness maliix due lo lhe load vecloi r , is lhe diagonal maliix of eigenvalues, and is lhe maliix of lhe coiiesponding eigenveclois (buckling mode shapes). !ach eigenvalueeigenvecloi paii is called a buckling mode of lhe sliuc- luie. The eigenvalue is called buck- ling facloi and il is lhe scale facloi lhal musl mulliply lhe loads lo cause buck- ling in lhe given mode. Design codes noimally iecognise lwo lypes of inslabilily: lhe oveiall sway of lhe sliucluie (oul-of-plane buck- ling) and lhe inslabilily of a membei belween ils end nodes oi of a web panel belween sliffeneis and flanges (local buckling). nvesligaling many buckling modes wilh complex numeii- cal models involves piohibilive com- pulalional limes so lhal il is common piaclice lo analyse oul-of-plane slabil- ily wilh buckling analysis and lo check local buckling wilh lhe sliess magnifi- calion faclois piesciibed by code. The diffeienl lypes of launching unils iequiie specific appioaches lo model- ling and analysis. n lhe case of a lwin- lowei-beam MSS iigidly suppoiled al lhe peimanenl pieis, simple beam models can iepiesenl lhe box-giideis oi paiied -giideis adequalely. The lwin-lowei-liuss unils aie moie com- plex and 3D models of lhe enliie unil aie necessaiy when lhe piei biack- els aie flexible (Iig. 6) oi only some of lhe liusses suslain lhe casling cell. Modelling lhe suppoil sliucluies is also necessaiy when lhe MSS is sup- poiled on bolh peimanenl conciele pieis and lempoiaiy sleel pieis, as lhe diffeienl flexibilily of suppoils, lhe dif- feienl coefficienls of lheimal expan- sion, and lhe diffeienl lheimal ineilia of massive conciele pieis and slendei sleel pieis affecl lhe load disliibulion in lhe suppoil sliucluies and lhe buck- ling faclois accoidingly |2]. Analysis of a single-uppei-beam unil is also complex because lhe main sup- poil legs aie close lo each olhei (Iig. 7) lo lake suppoil on lhe fionl piei while lhe ieai legs aie dislanl lo feed seg- menls (Iig. 3) oi pieassembled cages (Iig. 7) lhiough lhe compleled deck. The ieai legs aie ad|uslable in plan lo fil lhe deck cuivaluie, and all lhe legs have hydiaulic loweiing syslems foi fasl ielease of lhe compleled span. n lhe piesence of so many lechnological iesliainls, lhe sliucluial nodes belween lhe legs and lhe -giideis aie veiy com- plex. Single-beam models aie useful lo Iig. 6. Twin-lowcr-truss MSS with jlcxiblc support crossbcans (author) Iig. 7. Casting ccll oj a singlc-uppcr-bcan MSS (author) Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 Science and Technology 137 analyse span casling, lhe applicalion of piesliessing, and self-launching, bul 3D shell-elemenl models aie oflen indis- pensable lo assess lhe sliucluial nodes. The lwin-uppei-liuss unils lake suppoil on flexible ciossbeams, and disiegaid- ing lhe defleclions of suppoils leads lo inaccuiale slabilily analyses. n lhe MSS of Iig. 8, lhe casling cell is sus- pended on eilhei side fiom lwo paiied liusses (lighl giey liusses in Iig. 9), while a lhiid exleinal liuss conliols oul-of-plane buckling and caiiies lhe ganliy iunway. The flexuial defleclion of lhe suppoil ciossbeams is evidenl in lhe phologiaph. So, complex unils iequiie iefined analyses (in Iig. 9 a view of lhe 53OO-fiame-elemenl model is shown wilh lhe main load-caiiying membeis in lighl giey and lhe biacing and slabilizalion syslems in daik giey) foi accuiale evalualion of lhe load disliibulion. The model of a launching liuss should have |oinls al lhe conveigence poinls of lhe giavily axes of membeis. The aclual localion of |oinls is ciilical, as in one of lhe many load and suppoil condilions, lhe inilial geomeliy impei- feclions mighl have lhe same shape as lhal of a buckling mode. Theiefoie, choid misalignmenls and veilicalily eiiois in lhe suppoil loweis should always be suiveyed and iepioduced in lhe models by ad|usling lhe |oinl cooi- dinales. Some geneial design codes piesciibe allowable loleiances and equivalenl loads foi lhe analysis of lheii effecls. Howevei, lhe launching unils aie sub|ecled lo many assemblies and hundieds of sliess ieveisals, and lhe code piovisions aie lheiefoie oflen inadequale. The ieliabilily of lhe inleinal ieleases of lhe degiees of fieedom musl always be ciilically ieviewed. The lwin-uppei- beam unils lake suppoil on flex- ible loweis, wilh lhe main lowei lhal iesliains lhe liusses longiludinally and lhe secondaiy lowei wilh fiee iolleis oi Teflon skids. f fiiclion and weai pievenl sliding of beaiings, lhe lhei- mal elongalions of lhe liusses genei- ale hoiizonlal bending in lhe suppoil ciossbeams and P-della effecls in lhe loweis. Befoie ieleasing lhe longiludi- nal beaiing displacemenls in lhe model, il is lheiefoie necessaiy lo check lhal lhe longiludinal sliffness of lhe second- aiy lowei is giealei lhan lhe expecled uppei-bound iesislance lo sliding. Similai consideialions apply foi lhe iolalions. When lhe main beams lake suppoil on pivoled fiames lhal do nol iesliain lhe flexuial iolalions, lhe ailiculalion can be modelled wilh a cylindiical hinge al lhe pin axis. Bul when lhe suppoil lowei has foui dis- lanl legs, lhe ciossbeams aie placed on |acks lo cieale a hydiaulic hinge dui- ing launching. The safely iing nuls of lhe |acks aie lighlened befoie cambei ad|uslmenl and aie ieleased al foim- sliipping so lhal duiing span casling and lhe applicalion of piesliess, lhe |acks can be modelled wilh iigid fiame elemenls. Duiing launching, lhe sup- poil ieaclions aie kepl unifoim by lhe hydiaulic ciicuil and lhe |acks aie modelled wilh kinemalic syslems capa- ble of undeilaking diffeienlial deflec- lions wilhoul unbalancing lhe suppoil ieaclions. The model capabilily lo iepiesenl lhe unil behavioui should always be assessed wilh load lesling. Launching unils should be sub|ecled lo load lesl- ing befoie lhe fiisl use and aflei eveiy ma|oi ieassembly. Launching gan- liies aie sub|ecled lo bolh slalic and dynamic lesls, wheieas lhe MSS aie sub|ecled lo only slalic lesls. Aflei applying a waleipioof membiane and inseiling lhe inleinal foims, lhe casl- ing cell is filled wilh walei. Conciele blocks may be suspended fiom lhe main liusses nol lo oveiload lhe casl- ing cell wilh an excessive walei load as in Iig. 8. Out-nf-Planc Buckling nf Twin- Lppcr-Truss Lnits The main liusses of lhe lwin-uppei- beam unils aie eilhei biaced lo each olhei al lhe ends oi lolally unbiaced, and oul-of-plane buckling is a ma|oi design concein. The ciilical load foi oul-of-plane buckling of a fieeslanding liuss depends on lhe degiee of fixily al suppoils, a suppoil condilion piompl- ing lhe liuss lo lwisl as il deflecls lalei- ally, lhe laleial iesliainl aclion exeiled by lhe inclined diagonals on lhe com- piession choid, lhe localion and enlily of concenlialed loads, and lhe level of impeifeclion in lhe inilial geomeliy. n a lwin-uppei-liuss unil, lhese fac- lois coexisl and coalesce. The degiee of fixily al suppoils is modesl, lhe liusses being suppoiled on flexible ciossbeams, wilh oul-of-node eccen- liicily, and wilhoul cioss diaphiagms. The liusses bend laleially and lwisl because of diffeienlial defleclions in lhe suppoil ciossbeams, and lhe deplh of liuss and iolleis amplifies lhe laleial displacemenls of lhe uppei choids. The liiangulai cioss-seclion is lall and nai- iow and lhe laleial iesliainl aclion exeiled by lhe inclined diagonals is lheiefoie low. The load is applied lo lhe uppei choidi.e. above lhe cenlie of sheai of lhe cioss-seclion, and lhe geomeliy impeifeclions may be sig- nificanl because of lhe high numbei of field splices and lhe loleiances accu- mulaled in pievious assemblies. Oul-of-plane buckling of a lwin-uppei- liuss ganliy is invesligaled by analysing lhe placemenl cycle of some chaiaclei- islic segmenls. Buckling analysis of an MSS is simplei because of lhe absence of load movemenls. The buckling modes of lhe ganliy of Iigs. 10 and 11 have been compuled al hoisling and loweiing of lhe heaviesl segmenl wilh Iig. 8. 1oaJ tcsting oj a twin-uppcr-truss MSS (author) Iig. 10. Iirst buckling noJc at scgncnt hoisting Iig. 9. Nuncrical noJcl oj thc unit oj Iig. 8 138 Science and Technology Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 a 38OO-fiame-elemenl model; in lhe lwo figuies, lhe segmenl is iighl undei- nealh lhe winch-liolleys, iepiesenled in blue. Many inleimediale condilions have also been invesligaled as liian- gulai liusses can and do buckle also when lhe load is close lo lhe suppoil ciossbeams. n lhe piesence of lians- veise load eccenliicily, oul-of-plane buckling can be conliolled by equip- ping lhe winch-liolleys wilh liansveise sliding skids oi iolls lhal lake conliasl againsl lhe iunways lo exeil a laleial iesliainl aclion belween lhe compies- sion choids. !xcessive confidence wilh a launch- ing ganliy as a iesull of having alieady handled similai loads in lhe pasl may be a seiious mislake. nslabilily does nol only depend on lhe enlily of load bul also on how lhe load is applied lo lhe unil. When a ganliy handles a long piecasl beam, lhe winch-liolleys aie al lhe opposile ends of lhe beami.e. almosl one-half of lhe ganliy lenglh apail. When lhe load geomeliy is such lhal lhe winch-liolleys woik ad|acenl lo each olhei (in lhe macio-segmenlal eieclion of Iig. 12 lhe winch-liolleys opeialed in landem lo handle 4,3 MN heavy, 34 m long deck segmenls), lhe lolal load may be lhe same, bul lhe sliesses in lhe liusses aie much highei. Shifling lhe load liansveisely wilh lhe winch-liolleys (lhis is oflen necessaiy in biidges cuived in plan) also ovei- loads one of lhe lwo liusses. Neilhei is self-launching less demand- ing. Iig. 13 shows lhe fiisl oul-of-plane buckling mode of a longei lwin-uppei- liuss ganliy (42OO fiame-elemenl model) al piei conlacl, wilh lhe winch- liolleys al lhe ieai ciossbeam lhal sus- pend anli-oveiluining counleiweighls. Also such load concenlialions can affecl local slabilily of lhe unil. !xlieme allenlion musl be paid lo lhe pivoled suppoil legs. n lhe sup- poil fiame of Iig. 14, lhe bollom ciossbeam oiiginally had a box-sec- lion ovei ils enliie widlh. To ieuse lhe ganliy in a cuived biidge, lhe suppoil pislons had lo shifl liansveisely and lhe ciossbeam was windowed lo lodge lheii mobile heads, wilh lhe iesull lhal lhe cioss-seclional loision conslanl in lhe windowed end poilions of lhe ciossbeam became less lhan one-lhou- sandlh of lhe oiiginal value. When lhe suppoil pislon is al lhe end of lhe ciossbeam, lhe veilical load palh is lhe lhiee-aligned-hinge scheme of Iig. 14, in which lhe cenlial cylindiical hinge has minimum iolalional sliffness. The scheme is moie slable when lhe pislon is undei lhe inclined poilal leg so lhal lhe suppoil fiame would likely buckle (leading lo lhe loss of lhe unil) only in cuived biidges. As a iesull of lhe independenl design check piocess, lhe ciossbeam was sliffened by welding laleial flanges and webs lo cieale box- giideis on bolh sides of lhe windowed poilions, Iig. 15. Modelling lhe enliie unil is necessaiy nol only foi buckling analysis. The ciossbeam defleclions oveiload lhe sliffei suppoil membeis, and single- liuss models on iigid suppoils lheie- foie lend lo undeieslimale lhe sliesses in lhe pivoled suppoil legs and lhe concenlialed loads liansfeiied lo lhe deck. The same applies foi lhe fionl pivoled legs lhal suppoil lhe unil duiing launching of lhe main suppoil ciossbeams, Iig. 12. Iig. 12. IivotcJ jront launch support Iig. 13. Iirst buckling noJc at thc naxi- nun launch cantilcvcr Iig. 14. 1ocal instability Juc to winJowing oj thc cross-scction Iig. 15. Rcar support jranc ajtcr stijjcning (author) Iig. 11. Iirst buckling noJc at scgncnt rclcasc Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 Science and Technology 139 Dynamic Effccts nf Lncal Buckling and Prcvcntinn nf Prngrcssivc Cnllapsc Oveiloaded membeis of launching unils may buckle suddenly. Theiefoie, caieful inspeclions aie necessaiy dui- ing assembly and al iegulai inleivals duiing lhe use of lhe unil. Any dam- aged diagonals musl be ieinfoiced oi ieplaced and also lhe biaces musl be inspecled fiequenlly. The ieasons foi oul-of-flal musl be invesligaled, as lhis makes lhe membeis susceplible lo local buckling. The global safely of a launching unil depends on lhe safely of membeis againsl local failuie and on lhe unil iesponse lo local failuie. Local buck- ling of a piimaiy load-caiiying mem- bei is ciilical in lhe suppoil loweis, while slable alleinale load palhs oflen exisl in such iedundanl 3D liusses; howevei, local buckling could liiggei a chain ieaclion of failuies causing pio- giessive collapse. One of lhe main appioaches lo ensuie lhe iobuslness of a launching unil and lo ieduce lhe iisk of piogiessive col- lapse is lo iequiie insensilivily lo local failuiei.e. local buckling of a piimaiy load-caiiying membei musl nol liiggei collapse of lhe ganliy oi of a ma|oi pail of il. Cleai veiificalion pioceduies musl be slaled in lhe lechnical specifi- calions foi lhe unil al lhis puipose. Allhough lhe sliucluial damage induced by local buckling is oflen lim- iled, lhe sudden sliess iedisliibulion is a highly dynamic piocess lhal iequiies non-lineai analysis in lhe lime domain. The following appioach can be used: a) Slail fiom an accuiale model of lhe unil and apply lhe loads lhal geneiale local buckling. b) Compule lhe foices and momenls al lhe end nodes of lhe buckling membei. c) Remove lhe buckled membei fiom lhe model and apply lhe end-node foices and momenls wilh inveiled sign. ne a loading funclion lhal incieases lineaily fiom O lo 1 ovei a lenglh of lime aboul 1O limes isl peiiod of lhe ganliy, and lhen holds conslanl foi an equal lenglh of lime. ne an unloading funclion lhal abiuplly |umps fiom O lo 1 and holds conslanl lo 1 foi lhe duialion of lhe analysis. f) Load lhe model by applying lhe exleinal and nodal loads wilh lhe loading iamp funclion. g) Analyse lhe dynamic iesponse of lhe ganliy by iemoving lhe nodal loads wilh lhe unloading iamp funclion. The iesulling sliesses can be assessed like any olhei \LS condilion. The dynamic amplificalion facloi delecled by lime-hisloiy analysis is oflen low because of lhe flexibilily of lhese unils. f lhe analysis shows oveiloading of lhe alleinale load palh and buckling of anolhei membei, lhe same appioach can be followed lo analyse lhe enliie buckling sequence unlil eilhei sliess slabilizalion oi collapse. Axial plaslic hinges lhal diop lhe load al buckling can be inseiled in lhe diagonals lo aulomale lhe analysis of lhe buckling sequence. As iegaids lhe lime-inlegialion lech- nique, modal supeiposilion in lhe lime domain piovides a highly effi- cienl pioceduie wilh shoilei iun limes lhan diiecl inlegialion. Closed-foim inlegialion of lhe modal equalions is used lo compule lhe iesponse so lhal numeiical inslabilily pioblems aie nevei encounleied, and lhe lime slep may be any sampling value lhal is deemed fine enough lo capluie lhe maximum iesponse values. Diiecl inlegialion iequiies longei iun limes and lhe iesulls aie sensilive lo lime- slep size; howevei, impacl pioblems lhal excile a laige numbei of modes aie usually solved moie efficienlly by diiecl inlegialion. Iig. 16 illusliales lhe axial foice in lhe lefl diagonal al lhe fionl suppoil of lhe MSS of Iig. 9 as lhe ad|acenl diagonal buckles. The lhickei line has been compuled by diiecl inlegialion (HilbeiHughesTayloi melhod) and lhe giey lines have been compuled by modal supeiposilion (5O, 1OO, 15O, 2OO and 25O modes). The lime slep is O,O1 second in bolh cases. Diiecl inle- gialion closely malches lhe inilial and final slalic foices (which aie a piecious inleipielalion means foi such complex analyses), while lhe Wilson melhod conveiges slowly and only wilh so many vibialion modes lhal lhe sav- ing in iun lime is insignificanl. Diiecl inlegialion is also iecommended foi invesligaling impacls againsl lhe end- of-slioke buffeis oi lhe sudden loss of a piecasl segmenl. Lncal Buckling nf Platc Girdcrs at Suppnrts A plale giidei sub|ecled lo mainly flexuial sliesses may be affecled by lhiee foims of inslabilily: lhe laleial- loisional inslabilily of compiession flange; lhe loision inslabilily of com- piession flange; and buckling of web panels. n lhe paiied -giidei unils, lhe fiisl lwo foims of inslabilily aie con- liolled by cioss diaphiagms lhal avoid ielalive movemenls belween flanges and by lwo planes of hoiizonlal biaces lhal iesisl loision and disliibule lhe sliffening aclion of cioss diaphiagms along lhe giideis. Buckling of web panels is conliolled by flanges and sliffeneis and il is iaiely a ciilical silu- alion because of lhe piesence of lhe posl-ciilical domain. A non-sliffened web panel sub|ecled lo a concenlialed load applied lhiough lhe bollom flange may be affecled by lhiee foims of inslabilily: web-yielding above lhe load followed by lhe plaslic defoi- malion of lhe bollom flange, localised 27OO 26OO 25OO 24OO 23OO 22OO 21OO 2OOO 19OO 1,5 2,O 2,5 3,O 3,5 Time (sec) A x i a l
f o i c e
( k N ) Iig. 16. Dynanic rcsponsc oj thc aJjaccnt Jiagonal to local buckling 14O Science and Technology Structural Enginccring Intcrnatinnal 2/2007 ing cell back onlo lhe launch iolleis aflei applicalion of piesliessing. When lhe sciews aie exliacled excessively (e.g. lo compensale foi macioscopic level eiiois as in Iig. 18), local buck- ling of lhe sciew can cause collapse of lhe ganliy. Theiefoie, lhe allowable exlension of lhe ad|uslmenl sciews should always be slaled in lhe opeia- lional manuals of lhe unil. Cnnclusinn The papei illusliales lhe many polen- lially calasliophic design and opeia- lional failings delecled by lhe aulhoi wilhin numeious independenl design check assignmenls of launching gan- liies and MSS. Recommendalions and suggeslions aie also piovided. The papei, howevei, deals only wilh lhe sliucluial aspecls of lhe design check of lhe launching unils and disiegaids lhe mechanical aspecls and lhe pioce- duies and checks duiing opeialions of lhe unils. Acknnwlcdgcmcnts Mosl of lhe illuslialions in lhe papei deiive fiom independenl design check assignmenls peifoimed by lhe aulhoi as a fieelance con- sullanl foi lhe inleinalional geneial conliac- loi mpiesa Pizzaiolli & C., Paima, laly. mpiesa Pizzaiolli & C. is gialefully lhanked foi aulhoiizing lheii publicalion. A waim em- biace lo my fiiend Maiio Mailin, head of lhe Planning & Melhods Depl. of mpiesa Piz- zaiolli & C., who passed away iecenlly. Rcfcrcnccs |1] ROSGNOL, M. Launched Biidges, ASC! Piess, Reslon, \A, 1998, pp. 363, SBN: O-7844- O314-7. |2] ROSGNOL, M. Biidge Launching, Thomas Telfoid, London, 2OO2, pp. 342, SBN: O-7277- 3146-7. buckling al lhe base of lhe web panel followed by web-yielding and lhe onsel of a plaslic mechanism in lhe bollom flange, and geneial buckling of lhe web panel. These lhiee foims of inslabilily aie conliolled wilh lhe lenglh and flex- ibilily of lhe suppoil iolleis. n lhe mosl delicale cases, lhe suppoil iolleis may be placed on |acks lhal cieale hydiaulic loision hinges foi unifoim load dislii- bulion belween lhe -giideis. The axial sliesses in lhe bollom fla- nge of a suppoil seclion depend on lhe lype of giidei. Ioi an -giidei, lhe sliesssliain ielalionship is bil ineai. The behavioui of a box-giidei is moie complex because plane seclions do nol iemain plane and bolh lhe fiisl-yield momenl and lhe plaslic momenl capac- ily aie smallei lhan lheii lheoielical values, and buckling of lhe bollom flange can be veiy dangeious. n lhe lwin-uppei-beam unil of Iig. 17, one of lhe lwo box-giideis was slighlly misaligned duiing launching, so when lhe fionl canlilevei was alieady 48 m long, lhe manufacluiei of lhe unil decided lo iealign il. A ciossbeam was inslalled close lo lhe main sup- poil |acks and lwo flal |acks placed on Teflon plales, weie lo be inseiled undei lhe webs lo lhen pull lhe |acks and box-giidei iighlwaid. Bul lhe pio- ceduie was misundeislood and aflei iaising lhe box-giidei wilh lhe flal |acks, lhe Teflon plales weie inseiled belween lhe box-giidei and lhe main suppoil |acks. n lhe inilial slage of iealignmenl, lhe unsliffened box-giidei iesisled lhe liansveise bending geneialed by lhe incieasing eccenliicily in lhe suppoil ieaclions. Bul afleiwaids bolh lhe oulei flange and lhe cenlial flange panel buckled upwaids. This geneialed lwo low-fiiclion inclined planes, which gave iise lo unconliolled iighlwaid movemenl of lhe box-giidei. Ilange buckling fuilhei incieased and bolh webs also buckled. Collapse of lhe unil was avoided because lhe end blocks of lhe auxiliaiy ciossbeam had nol been dismanlled and lhis slopped lhe box- giidei slioke. Local buckling al suppoils can also be liiggeied by lhe veilical-ad|uslmenl devices. The sciews al lhe suppoil iolleis aie aimed al iaising lhe foim lo lhe casling level and loweiing lhe casl- Iig. 17. Buckling oj conprcssion jlangc at supports (author) Iig. 18. 1xccssivc cxtcnsion oj thc aJjust- ncnt scrcws (author) Structural Engineering International You can read this article and others ONLINE at: www.ingentaconnect.com/content/iabse/sei IABSE Members have access through Members Area If you want to include SEI (online and print) in your University/Companys Library then please ask your Librarian to get an SEI Institutional Subscription.