Seismic Isolation Retrofitting of Typical Multi-Span Steel Girder Bridges in New York State

Many of the existing multi-span simply supported bridges in New York State, U.S., are susceptible to earthquake damage and need to be retrofitted to reduce their seismic risk. In this study, seismic retrofit of a five-span simply supported bridge with typical high-type fixed and expansion steel rocker bearings is conducted. A refined three-dimensional (3D) finite element model of the bridge is developed in ANSYS by considering foundation impedances. Multi-support time history analyses have been implemented in the seismic retrofit design for two levels of ground motions: 1,000- and 2,500-year return period earthquakes. The site-specific ground motions with consideration of the spatial variation are generated based on the geotechnical information. Seismic retrofit by replacing existing steel bearings with lead-rubber bearing (LRB) isolators has been adopted. The parameters of the isolators are determined by considering factors such as the seismic performance and translational resistance during normal service. The vulnerability of structural members and seismic retrofit effectiveness are quantified by the demand-to-capacity (D/C) ratio for the combined demands at the extreme limit state. The analyses show that after seismic isolation retrofit the pervasive vulnerabilities in pier columns and cap beams are eliminated. Comparing with strengthening the vunerable structural members, seismic isolation is proved a cost-effective retrofit solution. The overall seismic isolation design and analysis procedures presented in this study can help guide future seismic retrofit of similar types of bridges.