Development of an energy dissipation restrainer for bridges using a steel shear panel

Restrainers, along with isolation bearings, are often installed in bridges to avoid upper girders falling off their piers during large earthquakes. In this study, a novel energy dissipation restrainer was developed. The energy dissipation restrainer remains elastic and provides a reaction force to restrain the displacement of the girder during small earthquakes, maintaining the functionality of the bridges. When large earthquakes occur, the restrainer can yield and dissipate energy, thus reducing the deformation between the superstructures and piers, and protecting the piers from server damages. To verify the performance of the restrainer, five specimens were designed and subjected to physical loading tests. The test results suggest that when appropriately designed, the restrainer has satisfactory deformation and energy dissipation capacities. The thickness of the side flange and width of the energy dissipation plate have significant effects on its performance. Because the number of physical tests was limited, finite element models were built using the general finite element program ABAQUS to supplement the results, and a parametric study focusing on the effects of the side flange thickness and restrainer width was conducted. Based on the test and analysis results, a formula for estimating the restrainer strength was derived. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.