{"id":{"repo_id":"wvu","oai_identifier":"oai:researchrepository.wvu.edu:etd-1897"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/wvu/oai:researchrepository.wvu.edu:etd-1897","repository":{"repo_id":"wvu","name":"West Virginia University","base_url":"https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/do/oai/"},"display":{"title":"Design and field testing of jointless bridges","abstract":"A recent trend in bridge design has been toward elimination of joints and bearings in the bridge superstructure. These joints and bearings are expensive in both initial and maintenance costs, and can get filled with debris, freeze up and fail in their task to allow expansion and contraction of the superstructure. They are also a \"weak link\" that can allow deicing chemicals to seep down and corrode bearings and support components. Because the design is difficult and their behavior is unknown, they are not widely used despite the enormous benefits. There are no standardized design procedures for these bridges, only a list of specifications is available. To address this, three bridges were statically load tested every three months for a period of two and a half years. Field data from these tests were used to make recommendations to current design procedures. Design recommendations based on experimental data are given in the form of a design example.","abstract_html":"A recent trend in bridge design has been toward elimination of joints and bearings in the bridge superstructure. These joints and bearings are expensive in both initial and maintenance costs, and can get filled with debris, freeze up and fail in their task to allow expansion and contraction of the superstructure. They are also a "weak link" that can allow deicing chemicals to seep down and corrode bearings and support components. Because the design is difficult and their behavior is unknown, they are not widely used despite the enormous benefits. There are no standardized design procedures for these bridges, only a list of specifications is available. To address this, three bridges were statically load tested every three months for a period of two and a half years. Field data from these tests were used to make recommendations to current design procedures. Design recommendations based on experimental data are given in the form of a design example.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Franco, Jason Matthew"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MS","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Civil and Environmental Engineering","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Hemanth Thippeswamy."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":1999,"date_issued":"1999-05-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"1999-05-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:15:01Z","subjects":["Civil engineering"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/894"],"render_values":[{"text":"https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/894","href":"https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/894","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.33915/etd.894","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Hemanth Thippeswamy."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Franco, Jason Matthew"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2019-01-17T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Civil and Environmental Engineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MS"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Civil engineering"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://doi.org/10.33915/etd.894","https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/894"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["A recent trend in bridge design has been toward elimination of joints and bearings in the bridge superstructure. These joints and bearings are expensive in both initial and maintenance costs, and can get filled with debris, freeze up and fail in their task to allow expansion and contraction of the superstructure. They are also a \"weak link\" that can allow deicing chemicals to seep down and corrode bearings and support components. Because the design is difficult and their behavior is unknown, they are not widely used despite the enormous benefits. There are no standardized design procedures for these bridges, only a list of specifications is available. To address this, three bridges were statically load tested every three months for a period of two and a half years. Field data from these tests were used to make recommendations to current design procedures. Design recommendations based on experimental data are given in the form of a design example."]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Design and field testing of jointless bridges"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Hemanth Thippeswamy."],"dc:creator":["Franco, Jason Matthew"],"dc:date.available":["2019-01-17T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["A recent trend in bridge design has been toward elimination of joints and bearings in the bridge superstructure. These joints and bearings are expensive in both initial and maintenance costs, and can get filled with debris, freeze up and fail in their task to allow expansion and contraction of the superstructure. They are also a \"weak link\" that can allow deicing chemicals to seep down and corrode bearings and support components. Because the design is difficult and their behavior is unknown, they are not widely used despite the enormous benefits. There are no standardized design procedures for these bridges, only a list of specifications is available. To address this, three bridges were statically load tested every three months for a period of two and a half years. Field data from these tests were used to make recommendations to current design procedures. Design recommendations based on experimental data are given in the form of a design example."],"dc:identifier":["https://doi.org/10.33915/etd.894","https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/894"],"dc:subject":["Civil engineering"],"dc:title":["Design and field testing of jointless bridges"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Civil and Environmental Engineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["MS"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T06:15:01Z"}