click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
structres
bridges
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Abutments | supports at the end of an arch bridge that carry the load and keep the ends from spreading out. |
spandrels | vertical supports of an arch bridge used to distribute the weight of the roadway to the arch below. |
Anchorages | securing devices that are embedded in the solid rock or massive concrete blocks that spread cables over a large area to evenly distribute the load and prevent the cables from breaking free. |
Span | the distances between two bridge supports |
Compression | a force that acts to compress or shorten the thing it is acting on |
Tension | a force that acts to expand or lengthen the thing it is acting on |
Buckling | what happens when the force of compression overcomes an objects ability to handle compression |
snapping | what happens when tension overcomes an objects ability to handle tension |
dissipate | to spread force over a greater area so that no one spot has to bear the brunt of the concentrated force |
transfer | to move force from an area of weakness to an area of strength |
truss | supporting lattice work added to create very tall beams that add rigidity to an existing beam greatly increasing its ability to dissipate the compression an tension |
torsion | a rotational or twisting force |
deck-stiffering trusses | a supporting truss system beneth the bridge back |
resonance | a fatal force to a bridge that is a vibration caused by an extended force that is in harmony with the natural vibration of the original thing. resonance vibrations travel through a bridge in waves. |
dampeners | a technique used to interrupt the resonant waves |