Abstract:
The structural analysis for earthquake load is important to get structural behaviors for
different types of bridge piers to get seismic demand resistance. The seismic performance
evaluation of three types of reinforced concrete hammerhead piers, bent piers, and pier
walls that have a similar superstructure to seismic zone 3 of the country is conducted.
The seismic evaluations is performed by modal response spectrum dynamic analysis
using CSi-Bridge v21 finite element analysis software. The deflected mode shape, the
fundamental time period, the moment, the base shear force, and the pier displacements
are the core findings. There is a larger pier top deflection and fundamental period for
flexible pier configurations. The results show that the bent-type pier has better deflection
resistance and a smaller fundamental time period than other pier types. The fundamental
period of vibration and the deflection at the top of the pier in a longitudinal direction are
larger for the pier wall among the three types of piers. For conventional foundation
modeling without considering soil-structure interaction, the deflections occurred only at
the top of the piers. Considering soil-structure interaction, the hammerhead pier has a
larger foundation displacement demand in the longitudinal direction, and the pier wall
has a greater transverse displacement demand. The hammerhead pier has a greater
longitudinal shear demand than the other piers, but the transverse shear demand is high
for the pier wall relative to the other two pier types. The longitudinal moment demand for
the pier-wall and transverse moment demand for the hammerhead pier are large.
Kay words: Bridge piers, Dynamic load, Response spectrum, Force, Displacement