Testing a Wood-Concrete Composite Bridge

Combining wood and concrete to form a composite structure for bridges was studied in the US as early as the 1930s. In Europe, however, this approach was not actively explored until the 1980s. The connection between the two materials in a wood-concrete composite system is of vital importance. A new type of connector has been developed, a steel reinforcing bar set with adhesive into holes drilled at an angle into a laminated (glulam) wooden beam. Three bridges using this system were constructed in Finland from 1992 to 1995. The behaviour of one of the three Finnish bridges was investigated in a field test. The tested wood-concrete composite bridge has confirmed that the new type of connectors are suitable for composite structures.