New link slabs model and solution

Abstract

This report deals with developing a new and improved model for some link slab bridges. This model takes into account a debond interval between the slab and the girder ends and postulates that in that interval. For that model, this project obtains new shear, moment and deflection formulas consisting of many parameters of which the debonded length is one variable. New solutions were developed and suggestive experiments supporting the results obtained were conducted. Also some qualitative experiments were done to support the theory behind these newly developed solutions. These experiments consist of the foam material experiment and the photoelastic experiment. In addition to that, a preliminary model of the beam was modeled and analyzed on abaqus, a finite element analysis software, to prove that the expected gap exists.