ABSTRACT
The orthotropic steel-ultra high performance concrete (UHPC) composite deck has been increasingly concerned for the fatigue damage ameliorations on the deck and the pavement. However, the UHPC shrinkage effect should be dealt with carefully to prevent the cracking on the UHPC slab. In this study, the 90 days shrinking effect of naturally cured UHPC slab on the composite deck was monitored and investigated. Meanwhile, a series of small size UHPC plates were tested as well for the reference. The results show that under the environment of high temperature (about 35 °C), low humidity (about 40%) and large temperature variation range (about 15 °C), the maximum monitored shrinkage of naturally cured UHPC slab of the composite deck specimen was about 800 με. It occurred near specimen edges. On the other side, in order to compare and verify with the test results, a preliminary simulation of the shrinking behavior of the UHPC composite deck was executed. The research results supply the test data to the development of UHPC application in the bridges.
