ABSTRACT
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Due to various events related to the collapse of bridges and viaducts in concrete in Brazil and the world, the attention of the technical community for these elements’ inspection and maintenance issues of grows increasingly. The interest in maintaining the bridges and viaducts in good condition is great and overall, as they are part of the basic infrastructure and represent a significant portion of the patrimony of the countries. Even if they are subject to depreciation over time, because of the exposure to the environment and the use, it is unworkable and unacceptable, economically and environmentally, that bridges and viaducts are simply replaced when they reach the end of their design life.
The conservation of works of social importance is an important part of the economy of a country. For this conservation to be effective, it is necessary perform inspections and periodic inspections for the development of an accurate diagnostic of safety and durability. These activities are meant as preventive maintenance, and should be proceeded by qualified and experienced professionals.
The detailed inspection of bridges and viaducts structures aims to survey the subsidies necessary and satisfactory to draw up a precise diagnosis and prognosis. This involves performing various tests and inspections relating the normative requirements of ACI (1993), ASTM (1996), and the ASCE (2000), among others. There is a wide range of methods with varying expense and accuracy. The choice of the data acquisition method highly depends on the inspection objective and with that on the assessment procedure (Rücker et al., 2006).
This article provides recommendations for an adequate investigation of the main causes of deterioration of these structures in order to elaborate a proper inspection plan and maintenance and consequently the extent of their service life.
