Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers

This study explores the transverse response of bridge piers in riverbeds under a multi-hazard scenario, involving seismic actions and scoured foundations. The combined impact of scour on foundations’ stability and on the dynamic stiffness of soil–foundation systems makes bridges more susceptible to...

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Main Authors: Christos Antonopoulos, Enrico Tubaldi, Sandro Carbonari, Fabrizio Gara, Francesca Dezi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Infrastructures
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2412-3811/10/4/75
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author Christos Antonopoulos
Enrico Tubaldi
Sandro Carbonari
Fabrizio Gara
Francesca Dezi
author_facet Christos Antonopoulos
Enrico Tubaldi
Sandro Carbonari
Fabrizio Gara
Francesca Dezi
author_sort Christos Antonopoulos
collection DOAJ
description This study explores the transverse response of bridge piers in riverbeds under a multi-hazard scenario, involving seismic actions and scoured foundations. The combined impact of scour on foundations’ stability and on the dynamic stiffness of soil–foundation systems makes bridges more susceptible to earthquake damage. While previous research has extensively investigated this issue for bridges founded on piles, this work addresses the less explored but critical scenario of bridges on shallow foundations, typical of existing bridges. A comprehensive soil–foundation structure model is developed to be representative of the transverse response of multi-span and continuous girder bridges, and the effects of different scour scenarios and foundation embedment on the dynamic stiffness of the soil–foundation sub-systems are investigated through refined finite element models. Then, a parametric investigation is conducted to assess the effects of scour on the dynamic properties of the systems and, for some representative bridge prototypes, the seismic response at scoured and non-scoured conditions are compared considering real earthquakes. The research results demonstrate the significance of scour effects on the dynamic properties of the soil–foundation structure system and on the displacement demand of the bridge decks.
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publisher MDPI AG
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series Infrastructures
spelling doaj-art-b83aaba64b4540f1be9e340bb2ba87432025-08-20T03:13:32ZengMDPI AGInfrastructures2412-38112025-03-011047510.3390/infrastructures10040075Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge PiersChristos Antonopoulos0Enrico Tubaldi1Sandro Carbonari2Fabrizio Gara3Francesca Dezi4Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XJ, UKDepartment of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XJ, UKDepartment of Construction, Civil Engineering and Architecture (DICEA), Università Politecnica delle Marche, 60131 Ancona, ItalyDepartment of Construction, Civil Engineering and Architecture (DICEA), Università Politecnica delle Marche, 60131 Ancona, ItalySchool of Science and Technology—Geology Section, University of Camerino, 62032 Camerino, ItalyThis study explores the transverse response of bridge piers in riverbeds under a multi-hazard scenario, involving seismic actions and scoured foundations. The combined impact of scour on foundations’ stability and on the dynamic stiffness of soil–foundation systems makes bridges more susceptible to earthquake damage. While previous research has extensively investigated this issue for bridges founded on piles, this work addresses the less explored but critical scenario of bridges on shallow foundations, typical of existing bridges. A comprehensive soil–foundation structure model is developed to be representative of the transverse response of multi-span and continuous girder bridges, and the effects of different scour scenarios and foundation embedment on the dynamic stiffness of the soil–foundation sub-systems are investigated through refined finite element models. Then, a parametric investigation is conducted to assess the effects of scour on the dynamic properties of the systems and, for some representative bridge prototypes, the seismic response at scoured and non-scoured conditions are compared considering real earthquakes. The research results demonstrate the significance of scour effects on the dynamic properties of the soil–foundation structure system and on the displacement demand of the bridge decks.https://www.mdpi.com/2412-3811/10/4/75scour effectssoil–foundation interactionshallow foundationsbridge piersseismic responsesoil–structure interaction
spellingShingle Christos Antonopoulos
Enrico Tubaldi
Sandro Carbonari
Fabrizio Gara
Francesca Dezi
Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
Infrastructures
scour effects
soil–foundation interaction
shallow foundations
bridge piers
seismic response
soil–structure interaction
title Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
title_full Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
title_fullStr Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
title_full_unstemmed Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
title_short Dynamic Behaviour and Seismic Response of Scoured Bridge Piers
title_sort dynamic behaviour and seismic response of scoured bridge piers
topic scour effects
soil–foundation interaction
shallow foundations
bridge piers
seismic response
soil–structure interaction
url https://www.mdpi.com/2412-3811/10/4/75
work_keys_str_mv AT christosantonopoulos dynamicbehaviourandseismicresponseofscouredbridgepiers
AT enricotubaldi dynamicbehaviourandseismicresponseofscouredbridgepiers
AT sandrocarbonari dynamicbehaviourandseismicresponseofscouredbridgepiers
AT fabriziogara dynamicbehaviourandseismicresponseofscouredbridgepiers
AT francescadezi dynamicbehaviourandseismicresponseofscouredbridgepiers