Longitudinal Glued Laminated Timber Bridge Modeling

An analytical model developed to analyze a glued laminated longitudinal-deck highway bridge is described. The model employs a general purpose finite element program SAP IV. Data from the study were used in the development of design criteria. Experimental data were obtained by testing a full-scale bridge in the laboratory, and they were used to validate the analytical model. The study found that the analytical model developed accurately predicts the behavior of the bridge. The experimental results support the conservatism of the analytical model. The analytical and experimental data indicate that the thru-bolt type of connector allows better distribution of loads within the bridge system than does the aluminum bracket connector