ABSTRACT
In this paper, a two-step methodology is proposed to enrich the traditional National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database by taking some environmental information into consideration and estimate climate effects on bridge decks deterioration. The NBI database is firstly extended with more detailed National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) weather station data which includes temperature, daily temperature difference, relative humidity and freeze-thaw cycles, by means of bridge longitude and latitude records. After that, Different climate factors are used to classify climate regions and the numerical analysis of climate effect on bridge decks deterioration is implemented based on the new database. The results indicate that region 3 with higher freeze-thaw cycles shown a more faster trend on deck deterioration than region 1 and 2. While, when the number of freeze-thaw cycles is less than 80 per year, concrete carbonization caused by temperature and humidity will be the predominant environmental factor for bridge deck deterioration. This proposed method makes the traditional National Bridge Inventory (NBI) database more comprehensive and easy to update and expand, it helps to obtain accurate prediction of the future condition of bridge decks in bridge management system.
