New type fairings for mitigating tsunami force on bridge deck and new indicators for evaluating tsunami-resistant capability of fairings

• Published in: Ocean engineering Vol. 312; p. 119353
• Main Authors: Dou, Yang, Hou, Hailin, Zhang, Yuzhi, Wang, Ning, Yang, Wanli
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 15.11.2024
• Subjects: Coastal bridge; Evaluation indicator; Fairing; Tsunami countermeasure; Tsunami force; Tsunami force; Fairing; Tsunami countermeasure; Coastal bridge; Evaluation indicator
• ISSN: 0029-8018
• DOI: 10.1016/j.oceaneng.2024.119353

Based on a comprehensive analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of existing tsunami resistant fairings for bridge girders, two novel types of fairings are proposed: the upper arc fairings (UA−α) and the lower arc fairings (LA−α). In addition, the exceedance impulse of horizontal force is suggested as a new indicator for evaluating tsunami resistant capability of fairings. In numerical simulations, comparative analysis is conducted among the upper arc fairings (UA−α), lower arc fairings (LA−α), and existing L-shape fairings (L−W) to evaluate their tsunami resistance capabilities. Results show that the UA−120 and L−1.00H are the best among the upper arc fairings (UA−α) and L-shape fairings (L−W), respectively. The differences between tsunami resistance capability of the lower arc fairings (LA−α) are inapparent, and LA−60 demonstrating relatively superior performance. Physical experiments further indicate that the UA−120 and L−0.50H fairings can averagely reduce the exceedance impulse of horizontal force 76.88% and 76.24% respectively. And the LA−60 fairing can averagely reduce the exceedance impulse of horizontal force 45.08%. •Two novel types of fairings are proposed for tsunami resistance in bridge design.•Horizontal force exceedance impulse is introduced as a new indicator of tsunami resistant capability.•Experimental results show UA-120 and L-0.50H fairings reduce horizontal force exceedance impulse by 76.88% and 76.24%.