Loading capacity evaluation of composite box girder with corrugated webs and steel tube slab

This paper presents a type of composite box girder with corrugated webs and concrete filled steel tube slab to overcome cracking on the web and reduce self-weight. Utilizing corrugated steel web improves the efficiency of prestressing introduced into the top and bottom slabs due to the accordion effect. In order to understand the loading capacity of such new composite structure, experimental and numerical analyses were conducted. A full-scale model was loaded monotonically to investigate the deflection, strain distribution, loading capacity and stiffness during the whole process. The experimental results show that test specimen has enough loading capacity and ductility. Based on experimental works, a finite element (FE) model was established. The load-displacement curves and stress distribution predicted by FE model agree well with that obtained from experiments, which demonstrates the accuracy of proposed FE model. Moreover, simplified theoretical analysis was conducted depending on the assumptions which were confirmed by the experimental and numerical results. The simplified analysis results are identical with the tested and numerical results, which indicate that simplified analytical model can be used to predict the loading capacity of such composite girder accurately. All the findings of present study may provide reference for the application of such structure in bridge construction.