A study on thermal behaviour of curved steel box girder bridges considering solar radiation

Solar radiation induces non-uniform temperature distribution in the bridge structure depending on the shape of the structure and shadows cast on it. Especially in the case of curved steel box girder bridges, non-uniform temperature distribution caused by solar radiation may lead to unusual load effects enough to damage the support or even topple the whole curved bridge structure if not designed properly. At present, it is very difficult to design bridges in relation to solar radiation because it is not known exactly how varying temperature distribution affects bridges; at least not specific enough for adoption in design. Standard regulations related to this matter are likewise not complete. In this study, the thermal behavior of curved steel box girder bridges is analyzed while taking the solar radiation effect into consideration. For the analysis, a method of predicting the 3-dimensional temperature distribution of curved bridges is used. It uses a theoretical solar radiation energy equation together with a commercial FEM program. The behavior of the curved steel box girder bridges is examined using the developed method, while taking into consideration the diverse range of bridge azimuth angles and radii. This study also provides reference data for the thermal design of curved steel box girder bridges under solar radiation, which can be used to develop design guidelines.