Numerical Simulation of Prestressed Concrete Girders Through Different Modelling Approaches

The structural safety assessment of existing infrastructures is a central issue in civil engineering, especially after recent disasters that have hit different Italian bridges. Several data collected showed how existing Italian bridges are mainly composed by simply supported, beam-type, prestressed concrete decks. In this work, the response of a scaled prestressed concrete bridge girder was investigated through experimental test, different types of numerical models and analytical methods. Nonlinear models were developed according to the finite element method and the applied element method. The two numerical approaches were considered: the Finite Element Method and the Applied Element Method, computing the accuracy and the computational efficiency of each one. The results of the analytical prediction and the numerical simulations are then compared with the experimental test outcomes, showing good agreement on both local and global response parameters.