Dynamic response analysis of bridge precast segment piers under vehicle collision

In recent years, the safety of the bridge structure has been challenge due to the vehicle collision on the pier, and the accident of vehicle collision has caused a lot of economic losses. With the development of precast bridge structure, the dynamic performance of precast segment pier has attracted extensive attention. The dynamic responses and failure modes of bridge precast segment piers under vehicle collision were investigated in this work. Firstly, the numerical model of precast segment column under impact loads was established, and its reliability was verified. Secondly, the numerical models of bridge precast segment pier and cast-in-place pier were established to analyze differences of dynamic performance under vehicle collision. The failure modes, impact force and displacement of bridge precast segment pier and cast-in-place pier were studied in detail. Finally, the factors of impact velocity, concrete strength, pre-stressing level and number of segments were considered respectively. The numerical results show that the damage of precast segment pier is smaller than that of cast-in-place pier under vehicle collision, and the peak impact force of precast segment pier is slightly lower than that of cast-in-place pier. The prestressing level and number of segments have no obvious effect on impact force of precast segment pier under vehicle collision. The relative displacements between precast segments under vehicle collision need to be taken into account in design.