Deflection Calculation and Analysis of PC Box Girder Bridges with Corrugated Steel Webs

In order to study the effects of shear lag and shear deformation caused by corrugated steel webs on the deflections of prestressed concrete (PC) box girder bridges with corrugated steel webs (CSWs), the deflection calculation for this type of bridge was calculated based on the energy variational method. First, based on the in-plane shear deformation of the flange plates and the distribution law of flexural shear flow, the longitudinal displacement function for this type of bridge was derived. This function can be used to estimate the shear lag effect and the shear deformation of CSWs. Second, based on the obtained longitudinal displacement function, the deflection formulas for a box girder bridge with CSWs were obtained using the variational principle method. The effectiveness of the formulas was verified using model tests and the ANSYS finite element analysis. Finally, variations in the width-span ratio and the heights of CSWs were made, under different types of loads, to study their influences on shear lag and shear deformation, and thereby on the deflections of simply supported and continuous box girder bridges with CSWs. The results show that when the width-span ratio is 0.108-0.650, the shear lag and the shear deformation of CSWs have significant effects on the deflection of continuous box girder bridges with CSWs, when under a concentrated load, which cannot be ignored. When the width-span ratio is 0.108-0.650, the effects of shear deformation of CSWs on the deflection of simply supported and continuous box girder bridges with CSWs, should only be considered under uniform load, while the effect of the shear lag should only be considered under specific span-width ratios and specific heights of CSWs.