Time-Progressive Dynamic Assessment of Abrupt Cable-Breakage Events on Cable-Stayed Bridges

AbstractAlthough long-span bridges are usually designed with sufficient structural redundancy, particular concerns arise about the abrupt breakage of bridge cables, which may cause progressive failure such as zipper-like collapse. The time-progressive nonlinear dynamic analysis approach is proposed to investigate the abrupt cable-breakage event of a cable-stayed bridge. Compared with existing studies, the proposed methodology focuses on the simulation of cable loss scenarios in a more realistic manner through incorporating stochastic moving traffic loads, dynamic bridge–vehicle interactions, and associated dynamic initial states of the abrupt cable-breakage event. Several important issues associated with the proposed simulation methodology, such as the finite-element modeling option of cable breakage, different initial states of cable breakage, nonlinearity, and traffic loads, are investigated through a prototype bridge example. Finally, the response envelopes in terms of moments and stresses along the wh...