RESEARCH ON MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF STEEL SPHERICAL HINGE OF ASYMMETRIC ROTATION CONSTRUCTED LONG-SPAN CABLE-STAYED BRIDGE

Aiming at the difficulty in weighing and counterweighting of super-tonnage asymmetric bridges with horizontal rotation construction, a new system for horizontal rotation of bridges has been developed. The system adopts load-bearing supports to bear the unbalanced moment of the upper part, which can save construction procedures and costs such as the weighing and counterweight. A finite element model of the new system was established by using the software ABAQUS, and it was used to analyze the spherical hinge and the concrete-filled steel tubular footing under the action of vertical load and unbalanced moment. The load distribution between the support footing and the spherical hinge was basically consistent with the theoretical results. The friction moment of the spherical hinge could counterbalance part of the unbalanced moment. When the friction coefficient increased from 0.03 to 0.1, the friction moment increased, and the vertical force of the spherical hinge and support footing increased by 2.4% and -19.1%, respectively. Thus the friction coefficient had slight effect on the vertical force of the load-bearing support footing. The friction coefficient of the spherical hinge should be minimized in order to minimize the traction force. The proposed formula could be used to calculate the vertical load borne by the concrete-filled steel tube support footing.