Iowa State University engineers earn grant for innovative research of accelerated bridge construction (ABC) For the second year, Iowa State University’s Bridge Engineering Center has been chosen to be a partner in a United States Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) Tier I University Transportation Center (UTC) grant. The grant brings $2.1 million to the research …Continue reading “Bridge Engineering Center receives $2.1m University Transportation Center grant for second year”
Imagine pulling up to a bridge that you previously used but now is closed to you because of weight restrictions. What will you have to do to get to your destination? How far out of your way do you think you’ll go to complete a delivery or make it home? Well, that is exactly the kind of scenario that happened to me just last year. It was after harvest, and I was taking a shipment of soybeans to the local elevator. I arrived at a small, rural bridge that recently had been given a weight limit that I couldn’t clear. When that happens, it can be a lot more than just an inconvenience.
Iowa State University engineers are working with the Iowa Department of Transportation to develop and test a comprehensive monitoring system on the new bridge near downtown Iowa Falls. The system will take continuous, real-time measurements of corrosion, strain, surface conditions, moisture within the bridge’s steel arch and structure movements over time. Brent Phares, interim director …Continue reading “Iowa State engineers load new Iowa Falls bridge with damage-detection gauges”
