New ICT-IDOT projects
1/22/2024
Illinois Center for Transportation is pleased to announce the start of new Illinois Department of Transportation-sponsored projects, from most recent start date.
R27-265: Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Integral Abutment Bridges: Single and Group Pile Behavior
Mohsen Issa and Farhad Ansari, University of Illinois Chicago
Mark Shaffer, Illinois Department of Transportation
Integral abutment bridges use piles, or sections that extend from the ground to support the bridge, to absorb a bridge’s expansion and contraction as temperature changes. A pile’s ductility affects how much it is allowed to deflect due to this expansion and contraction. The allowable ductility is often more than what is determined in design.
The aim here is to determine the maximum limits for integral abutment bridges based on physical testing as well as evaluate the level of displacement ductility corresponding to different pile states such as onset of yielding and strain hardening. Researchers will verify IDOT’s standards and determine a design procedure that can take advantage of pile ductility.
Increasing ductility in the design of integral abutment bridges may reduce pile sizes or the number of piles, potentially providing taxpayers with savings of $10,000 per bridge.
The project will conclude December 2026.
R27-257: Seismic Damping Effects of Bridges
James LaFave and Larry Fahnestock, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Mark Shaffer, Illinois Department of Transportation
Bridges are often connected to elements that are not considered part of the bridge, such as concrete pavements that tie into the bridge and embankments placed against bridge abutments. These elements absorb seismic loads, increasing the bridge’s calculated seismic damping, but are often not considered in bridge seismic design.
This project will evaluate standard IDOT abutment and approach pavement details and determine their seismic damping characteristics. Researchers will create design procedures so that designers can add damping from these details into seismic models to reduce seismic loads.
This project will benefit the public by generating smaller, less expensive seismic designs. In addition, bridges can be retrofitted more easily by taking load reductions into account when evaluating the bridge for seismic loads.
The project will conclude December 2025.
R27-SP66: Anti-Graffiti Protection Systems
Yasser Khodair, Bradley University
Mark Shaffer, Illinois Department of Transportation
Anti-graffiti coatings reduce the amount of effort required to remove graffiti on items such as concrete and steel.
This project will provide IDOT with an overview of anti-graffiti products and guidance for their use. Researchers will review anti-graffiti protection systems as well as survey state agencies’ practices and policies.
Effectively selecting anti-graffiti protection systems will provide cost savings by allowing for the quick and easy removal of graffiti from state infrastructure.
The project will end October 2024.
R27-SP65: Low-Clearance Early Warning Devices
Yanfeng Ouyang, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Kyle Armstrong, Illinois Department of Transportation
The state of Illinois recently passed legislation requiring IDOT to establish a pilot program to install devices on or near bridges over roadways that warn drivers of low clearances.
The aim of this project is to help identify potentially effective devices and technologies that can be installed to help reduce bridge strikes in Illinois. Researchers will examine various technologies and devices used to provide early warning of low-clearance structures as well as their effectiveness.
Decreasing the number of bridge strikes reduces costly damage to state property and reduces road and lane closures caused by damaged structures that cannot be immediately repaired.
The project will conclude July 2024.