Numerical study of performance of soil-steel bridge during soil backfilling

This paper presents results of a numerical analysis performed on a corrugated steel plate (CSP) bridge during a backfilling process. The analysed bridge structure was a box culvert having a span of 12315 mm as well as a clear height of 3550 mm. Obtained calculation results were compared with the experimental ones. The paper is presented with the application of the Fast Lagrangian Analysis of Continua (FLAC) program based on the finite differences method (FDM) to determine behaviour of the soil-steel bridge structure during backfilling. The assumptions of a computational 2D model of soil-steel structure with a non-linear interface layer are described. Parametric analysis of the interface element is also given in order to receive the most realistic calculation results. The method based on this computational model may be used with large success to design calculations of this specific type of structure instead of the conventional and fairly inaccurate analytical methods. The conclusions drawn from such analysis can be helpful mostly for the assessment of the behaviour of steel-soil bridge structures under loads of backfilling. In consideration of an even more frequent application of this type of structure, conclusions from the conducted analysis can be generalized to a whole class of similar structural bridge solutions.