The NU Precast/Prestressed Concrete Bridge I-Girder Series

Abstract

Designers have experienced limitations when using existing precast, prestressed concrete I-girders in continuous span bridges. The Nebraska University (NU) girder series was recently developed to overcome these limitations and to take advantage of recent advances in precast concrete production technology. This paper presents a brief history of precast, prestressed concrete bridge I-girder development, the procedure undertaken to develop the NU girder series, performance comparisons with several existing standard girder shapes, and the steps taken by the Nebraska Department of Roads to implement the research results.