Author(s): R. Gaudio; C. Grimaldi; A. Tafarojnoruz; F. Calomino
Linked Author(s): Roberto Gaudio
Keywords: No Keywords
Abstract: Local scour at bridge piers was extensively studied in the literature and several empirical formulae were proposed to assess the maximum scour depth at equilibrium. Since the equations were derived in small scale conditions, the application to practical cases is uncertain. Recently, formulae were tested by using field datasets, but in few cases only. In this paper, six design formulae for the estimation of the equilibrium maximum scour depth at a circular pier were compared by using synthetic and original field data. In the former case, random input variables were generated with the Monte Carlo simulation technique in realistic ranges typical of many natural watercourses, in both clear-water and livebed scour conditions, in order to achieve useful results for field applications. The results show that different formulae produce significantly different predictions. The selected formulae were also tested on a field dataset in the case of uniform bed sediments, confirming that their ability to assess the maximum scour depth at equilibrium is not satisfactory.
Year: 2010