Behaviour of integral bridges under vertical and horizontal earthquake ground motion

In this study, the earthquakes effect on integral bridges is examined, through computer simulation of an integral abutment bridge. The study is made based on Eurocode 8 recommendations. For the analysis, a symmetrical medium length integral bridge obtained from an existing structure is used. Both static and dynamic relative displacement studies are carried out to develop insight as to the significance or dominance of either dynamic or relative displacement effects. The final aim of this study is to conduct prediction of dynamic response of the bridge after applying the earthquake vertically and horizontally. The time histories were used to carry full integration time history analyses in to simulate the dynamic response of the bridge. The results show that relative displacements play an important role in overall structural response of the integral bridge, compared to the pure dynamic response.