CFD practical application in conceptual design of a 425 m cable-stayed bridge

CFD techniques try to find their way in the bridge engineering realm nowadays. However, there are certain fields where they offer superior performance such as conceptual bridge design and bidding design. The CFD studies carried out for the conceptual design of a 425 m length cable-stayed bridge are presented. A CFD commercial package has been employed to obtain for a set of cross-sections the aerodynamic coefficients considering 2D steady state. Additionally, for those cross-sections which showed adequate force coefficients, unsteady 2D simulations were carried out to detect the risk of vortex shedding. Based upon these computations the effect on the aerodynamic behavior of the deck cross-section caused by a number of modifications has been evaluated. As a consequence, a new more feasible cross-section design has been proposed. Nevertheless, if the design process proceeds to a more detailed step a comprehensive set of studies, comprising extensive wind tunnel tests, are required to better find out the aerodynamic bridge behavior.