Improved prestressed concrete girder with hybrid segments system

The prestressed concrete (PSC) technology that was first developed by Freyssinet has significantly improved over the past century in terms of materials and structural design in order to build longer, slender, and more economic structures. The application of prestressing method in structures, which is determined by the pre-tension or post-tension processes, is also affected by the surrounding conditions such as the construction site, workforce skills, and local transportation regulations. This study proposes a prestressed concrete girder design based on a hybrid segment concept. The adopted approach combines both pre-tension and post-tension methods along a simple span bridge girder. The girder was designed using newly developed 2400 MPa PS strands and 60 MPa high-strength concrete. The new concept and high strength materials allowed longer span, lower girder depth, less materials, and slender design without affecting the lateral stability of the girder. In order to validate the applicability of the proposed hybrid prestressed segments girder, a full-scale 35 m girder was fabricated, and experimental tests were performed under various fatigue and static loading conditions. The experimental results confirmed the feasibility of the proposed long-span girder as its performance meets the railway girder standards. In addition, the comparison between the measured load-displacement curve and the simulation results indicate that simulation analysis can predict the behavior of hybrid segments girders.