Continuous dynamic monitoring of a centenary iron bridge for structural modification assessment

Abstract

A multi-channel continuous dynamic monitoring system has been installed in a centenary iron arch bridge on late November 2011. The historic infrastructure, completed in 1889 and crossing the Adda river about 50 km far from Milan, is the most important monument of XIX century iron architecture in Italy and is still used as roadway and railway bridge. The monitoring project follows a series of preliminary ambient vibration tests carried out on the bridge since June 2009.

The paper describes the bridge structure and its dynamic characteristics identified from the experimental studies developed since 2009, the installed monitoring system and the software developed in LabVIEW for automatically processing the collected data. Subsequently, the tracking of automatically identified natural frequencies over a period of about 18 months is presented and discussed, highlighting the effects of environmental and operational conditions on the bridge dynamic characteristics as well as the detection of structural changes, mainly based on natural frequencies shifts.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

automated modal identification / continuous dynamic monitoring / environmental/operational effects / iron arch bridge / structural health monitoring

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Acknowledgements

The research was supported by the Italian Railway Authority (RFI). The authors would like to thank PhD F. Busatta for the development of the signal processing tools in the LabVIEW environment. Mr. M. Antico and Mr. M. Cucchi (VibLab, Politecnico di Milano) and the technical staff of RFI are gratefully acknowledged for the assistance during the field tests, the installation and maintenance of the monitoring system.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg