Head of the project: prof. Ing. Vičan Josef, CSc.

Research team: doc. Ing. Odrobiňák Jaroslav, PhD., Ing. Gocál Jozef, PhD., Ing. Hlinka Richard, PhD., Ing. Farbák Matúš, PhD., Ing. Prokop Jozef, PhD.

Duration: january 2021 – December 2023                             

The steel load-bearing structures of bridges show a number of details with the potential for failures. Whether it is riveted structures, with details verified by service, or more modern welded load-bearing structures with a number of known and newer details causing more or less serious failures. These are usually joints of elements within the load bearing structural system, where welds are a very effective type of connection from the realization point of view, but with a significant potential for the occurrence of dangerous failures, especially fatigue cracks. Although a large number of details causing possible failures are known and documented in standards for fatigue verification, their impact on global analysis as well as on the reliability and serviceability of the bridge is not explored. Especially the uniform systematization of details and failures with their impact on behaviour of the system in service and the transition ability of the service load is not processed. The presented project has set itself the goal to process this issue and provide data for elaboration of a catalogue of failures of steel bridges.