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Numerical study of confinement effectiveness in solid and hollow reinforced concrete bridge piers: Methodology

In large reinforced concrete bridge piers, code-recommended overlapping closed stirrups are almost impossible to place in practice. (Contact leading bridge designer s.stathopoulos@domi-ae.gr). Designers have thought of simpler arrangements (cross-ties) which however have not been tested for performance. The paper resolves this issue using advanced nonlinear finite element analysis, based on an original plasticity-based model for confined concrete developed by the authors, which the developers of the leading commercial software ATENA have adopted, and verifies the adequate performance of these (and other novel) simpler reinforcement patterns in a much cheaper and quicker way than large-scale testing.