Evaluation of Seismic Demands in A Continuous Bridge

This paper examines the dynamic behavior of a highway RC-bridge subjected to both near-fault and far-field ground motions. The bridge consists of a hinge supported continuous girder with six concrete piers and the bridge is designed according to the Taiwan seismic design code. To investigate the hysteretic behavior of the bridge piers, cyclic loading tests were carried out at the National Center for Research on Earthquake Engineering (NCREE). The Chi-Chi earthquake ground motion record was adopted as the near-fault earthquake characteristics whereas another earthquake record was selected for the far-field earthquake characteristics. The ductility demands and base shear demands due to the near-fault and the far-field earthquake ground motions are compared and conclusions drawn from the study. The stipulation of code limitations and the present calculated demands are discussed.