Instrumentation to Monitor Bridge Foundation on the Crosstown Project
Location
CSU 284
Start Date
21-4-2008 8:00 AM
End Date
21-4-2008 10:00 AM
Student's Major
Mechanical and Civil Engineering
Student's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Mentor's Name
Aaron S. Budge
Mentor's Department
Mechanical and Civil Engineering
Mentor's College
Science, Engineering and Technology
Description
The Crosstown Bridge Monitoring Project is located at the intersection of Highway 62 and Interstate 35W a few miles south and west of downtown Minneapolis. The bridge being evaluated is at a railroad overpass located midway along the Crosstown expansion. This research project involved placing instrumentation on the bridge foundation in order to measure the change in the foundation loading during the course of the construction project. For several years there have been questions pertaining to the forces in the pile foundations that support highway embankments. This project placed strain gages on the pile foundations in order to monitor these forces over time. The gages were placed in select locations on the piles prior to being driven into the ground to support the bridge abutments. To protect the gages during driving, steel angles were welded to the piles to cover the gages and the cables. The cables were connected to a data collection system in order to monitor the foundation over time. This portion of the overall project involved testing the strain gages prior to pile driving and after pile driving in order to determine if any damage to the gages occurred during pile driving. Readings taken using a datalogger and a simple multimeter will be provided to show the results of this check, with conclusions relating to the mortality of the gages. Although this project is still in its preliminary stages, the objective of the overall project will be to monitor and record the strains for several years.
Instrumentation to Monitor Bridge Foundation on the Crosstown Project
CSU 284
The Crosstown Bridge Monitoring Project is located at the intersection of Highway 62 and Interstate 35W a few miles south and west of downtown Minneapolis. The bridge being evaluated is at a railroad overpass located midway along the Crosstown expansion. This research project involved placing instrumentation on the bridge foundation in order to measure the change in the foundation loading during the course of the construction project. For several years there have been questions pertaining to the forces in the pile foundations that support highway embankments. This project placed strain gages on the pile foundations in order to monitor these forces over time. The gages were placed in select locations on the piles prior to being driven into the ground to support the bridge abutments. To protect the gages during driving, steel angles were welded to the piles to cover the gages and the cables. The cables were connected to a data collection system in order to monitor the foundation over time. This portion of the overall project involved testing the strain gages prior to pile driving and after pile driving in order to determine if any damage to the gages occurred during pile driving. Readings taken using a datalogger and a simple multimeter will be provided to show the results of this check, with conclusions relating to the mortality of the gages. Although this project is still in its preliminary stages, the objective of the overall project will be to monitor and record the strains for several years.
Recommended Citation
Welch, Brian. "Instrumentation to Monitor Bridge Foundation on the Crosstown Project." Undergraduate Research Symposium, Mankato, MN, April 21, 2008.
https://cornerstone.lib.mnsu.edu/urs/2008/oral-session-02/7
