| Abstrakt: |
Computerassisted analysis was used to study the relation among uniform, linear, and nonlinear stress components thermally induced in a composite bridge section for hypothetical parameters of varying span lengths, number of spans, and support conditions, as well as for actual bridges. The results were verified by conventional methods of analysis. The following was concluded for prismatic constant sections: 1 For constant proportionality of span lengths, each of the three thermal stress components is independent of span length; 2 variation of the proportionality of span lengths affects only the linear stress component; 3 support reactions and deflections caused by thermal loading are length dependent, but the induced moments and stresses are independent of length; 4 as the number of spans increases, the thermally induced moment magnitudes tend to converge; 5 the magnitude of reactions, for constant proportionality of span lengths, varies inversely with span length; and 6 for total end fixity, no exterior or interior vertical support reactions are thermally induced. |
