New damage evolution law for modeling fatigue life of asphalt concrete surfacing of long-span steel bridge

As the traffic volume and wheel load on the orthotropic deck of a long-span steel bridge increase, longitudinal cracks often develop in the asphalt concrete surfacing leading to deterioration. The purpose of this study was accordingly to derive the fatigue failure evolution law of this surfacing. The fatigue damage evolution mechanism was studied from a micro perspective to derive a general fatigue damage evolution law. Fatigue tests and theoretical predictions of fatigue life were then performed for different asphalt concrete surfacing types commonly used in the decks of long-span steel bridges to verify the derived law. (C) 2020 Published by Elsevier Ltd.