Bridge Building

Quinten Walker
Period 5 Mr. G

Bridge Variants
There are four different types of bridges, these bridge designs consist of
#1: Beam; This is a bridge that has a horizontal beam supported at each end by piers.
#2: Arch; Just like it sounds this bridge has arches all throughout the bottom of the bridge.

#3: Suspension; A Suspension bridge has cables that are attached to the base of it.
#4: Truss; This type of bridge has triangles all throughout the bridge that is made out of
steel beams.

Beam Bridge
A beam bridge is the basic type of bridge, you have your base running across, then on the
bottom of the base you have several beams that are supported by piers. But since all of the
weight goes on the beams, and the beams are being pushed down onto the piers, it will
become weaker the farther apart the piers are. So this is why most beam bridges usually will
not span over two hundred and fifty feet.

Arch Bridge
An Arch bridge is a smarter way than beam bridges because instead of having beams that go
straight down, theyre arched. This is a better way because the beams are straight and that
shape is not the strongest, so the arch bridge uses arches. This can hold so much more
because the arch has natural strength. These bridges today are built out of steel or concrete,
and since they can hold more weight, they can span up to eight hundred feet.

Suspension Bridge
A suspension bridge has all the weight of the base being supported by vertical cables. This
in my opinion this bridge is the best type of bridge, and one reason is that this bridge can
hold tremendous weight and it can span between two thousand and seven thousand feet.
And that to me is amazing that it can go for that long and hold all that weight. Suspension
bridges has a type of truss system underneath to stop bending and twisting.

Truss Bridge
A truss bridge is another smart idea with using shapes that are naturally strong. A truss
bridge is just a bunch of big triangles that are made of steel running throughout the base of
the bridge. These bridges are one of the oldest modern type bridges. This bridge saves a lot
of money because it uses materials efficiently.

Forces
Twisting: Torsion is an action that twists the material

Sliding: A Force that causes some parts of the material to slide past in
opposite directions.

Forces
Bending: When the material is curving, one side of it stretches apart, but the
other side squeezes in.

Stretching: the bridge will begin to stretch with there is a lot of tension.

Forces
Squeezing: When there is a lot of compression the bridge will start to
squeeze and it will become shorter.

Loads
Dead loads: Dead loads are permanent or stationary loads which are
transferred to structure throughout the life span.

Live loads: The weight of everything that goes over the bridge, this includes
people, cars. Etc...

Loads
Wind loads: Wind load is when strong winds push horizontally on the
structure, pushing it sideways.

Thermal loads: this is when intense weather causes the structure to expand
or shrink.

Loads
Earthquake loads: Earthquake forces shake both vertical and horizontal
forces on the building.

Vibration loads: These loads are caused by forced vibration of random

nature.

Loads
Settlement load: This happens when the soil underneath the columns
becomes uneven after years, and this causes the bridge to sink in on one side.
This can be fixed by making the columns bigger.

Shapes
One of the most common shapes used in bridge building are triangles, they
use this shape because it is a strong shape that just has natural strength. They
are economical to build. And you are able to build them in difficult places.
But they are very heavy, and complicated to design.

Shapes
Arch bridges are strong and simple bridges. They are extremely strong, and
they only get stronger. But they do take a long time to build and regular
maintenance is required

Moselle Viaduct Bridge

Location: Winningen
Length: 3,068 feet
Designer: Heinz Schnorpfeil Bau

Material: Steel
Date: 1972
How Long: 1969 through 1972

Golden Gate Bridge

Location: San Francisco, Marin County, California
Length: 8,981 feet
Designer: Joseph Strauss

Material: Steel
Date: May 27, 1937
How Long: January 5, 1933 to May 27, 1937

Francis Scott Key Bridge

Location: Baltimore
Length: 8,636 feet
Designer: Nathan C. Wyeth

Material: Steel
Date: March 1977
How Long: 1972-1977