Comparison of Damage Indexes for Assessing Seismic Fragility of Bearings in an Offshore Bridge

This study analyzes the applicability of different damage indexes for bearings, focusing on the time-dependent deterioration of materials and the time-dependent bond-slip behavior between steel and concrete caused by chloride erosion. First, the methodology is proposed, encompassing the time-dependent deterioration of materials, the time-dependent bond-slip behavior, the quantification of different damage indexes of the bearing, and the fragility analysis for the bearings. Next, an offshore bridge is used as an example to investigate the detailed elements of the components and the time-varying effects. Thereafter, based on incremental dynamic analysis and fragility analysis, the discussion focuses on the comparison of damage indexes for assessing the seismic fragility of bearings in an offshore bridge. This study indicates that if the relative displacement ductility ratio is adopted as the criterion, the coverage of PGA obtained by the theoretical method is 167% greater than that obtained using the empirical method, and the relative displacement ductility ratio, which incorporates the shear deformation of piers, is better aligned with the performance-based ductility design concept and offers better economy. Safety-based damage indexes are recommended for the bridge in seismic zones, while economy-based indexes can be used in favorable bridge environments.