Author(s): Ricardo De Aragao; Koichi Suzuki; Akihiro Kadota; Vajapeyam S. Srinivasan; Ikezawa Shingo
Linked Author(s): Vajapeyam S. Srinivasan
Keywords: Scouring; Bridge pier; Field investigation; Flow simulation; Floods; Typhoons
Abstract: A technique based on the installation of stacks of numbered bricks around piers has been applied to measure the maximum scour depth at the rear of two piers of the Shimanto River Bridge, Japan. In addition, the causes of a scouring past this bridge, that dug a 10 m deep hole, were also investigated. Measurements at the bridge site, flume experiments and flow field modeling were carried out to understand the mechanisms of these scouring processes and to propose feasible countermeasures. It was found that the results provided by the numbered bricks technique are comparable with those measured at the field and follow the same tendency seen in flume experiments. Flow simulations showed that, the water flowing over a bed protection cap installed between the piers, generates a series of vortices that close in on the riverbed and thus becoming one of the scouring agents. A riprap protection set inside the deep hole was found to be an effective method in preventing further scouring.
Year: 2005