Fatigue failure analysis of stay cables with initial defects: Ewijk bridge case study
article
A failure assessment method of stay cables containing fractured wires is presented through an example of
an existing bridge. The wires constituting the stay cables of the bridge contained many initial defects that
were formed during the rolling process of these wires. Despite moderate loading, fatigue cracks started to
grow from these defects, increasing their size, and finally resulting in fracture of the remaining ligament
of the wires. A probabilistic model is put forward for assessing the resistance of the stay cable based on a
fracture mechanics model of the individual wires. A Bayesian update method is presented for estimating
the distribution of initial defects based on the inspection of fractured wires. The calculated reliability of
the stay cables of the examined bridge was lower than acceptable
an existing bridge. The wires constituting the stay cables of the bridge contained many initial defects that
were formed during the rolling process of these wires. Despite moderate loading, fatigue cracks started to
grow from these defects, increasing their size, and finally resulting in fracture of the remaining ligament
of the wires. A probabilistic model is put forward for assessing the resistance of the stay cable based on a
fracture mechanics model of the individual wires. A Bayesian update method is presented for estimating
the distribution of initial defects based on the inspection of fractured wires. The calculated reliability of
the stay cables of the examined bridge was lower than acceptable
Topics
TNO Identifier
507899
Source
Structural Safety, 51, pp. 47-56.
Pages
47-56
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