Efficient composite bridge deck consisting of GFRP, steel, and concrete

In this paper, a new cost-effective composite bridge deck consisting of multiple steel box cells, concrete slab, and glass fiber-reinforced polymer layer is investigated. First, the structural performance of the deck under static loading is evaluated experimentally. Then the results are validated by a finite element program. Results of the numerical analysis are in good agreement with those of the experiments. The load–displacement relationship, ultimate flexural resistance, failure mode, neutral axis, and strain distribution on glass fiber-reinforced polymer layer and concrete slab are examined during the test. Final results revealed that the ultimate failure of the composite deck initiates by longitudinal cracking on the top surface of the concrete slab. No debonding occurs at the interface between concrete slab and steel boxes which indicates that perfobond ribs could be effectively used for shear connection. The results of experimental and numerical analysis demonstrated that the bridge deck possesses desirable strength and meets the stiffness requirements.