ABSTRACT

ABSTRACT: A complex approach to life cycle reliability assessment of concrete bridges is presented. It consists of three basic parts: nonlinear modeling of concrete, reliability calculation, and degradation aspects. The software system SARA – Structural Analysis and Reliability Assessment – integrates the nonlinear finite element software ATENA with stochastic and reliability program FREET into an advanced engineering tool which can be used for reliability assessment of structures based on an advanced nonlinear computer simulation. Degradation phenomena can be examined in an extended tool of FREET. The methodologies are applied to an existing bridge structure of the motorway highway A22.