ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: Lightweight concrete has been used for long span bridges for many years, including its recent use in some major structures in the US and overseas. This paper begins with a brief overview of lightweight aggregate and lightweight concrete and the properties affecting construction, structural performance and durability. Issues to consider when using lightweight concrete for long-span bridges are then presented. Selected long-span bridge projects on which lightweight concrete has been used are discussed, including bridges where lightweight concrete has been used for the entire superstructure and for only the deck, including the suspension spans of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and some examples of long-span segmental concrete bridges in the US and Norway. Several projects where lightweight concrete was used for rehabilitation of long-span bridges are discussed, including the Brooklyn Bridge and the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge which are in the New York City area.
