LAUSR

Abstract This paper studies through numerical simulation a practical compound restrainer to use for the improvement of seismic performance of bridges. A mechanical model has been introduced for the restrainer and a basic optimisation approach has been conducted to evaluate the performance of the restrainer to changes in the properties of its components. A real 2-span simply supported plate girder bridge has been selected for case study. Using a detailed three-dimensional model, several non-linear time history analyses were performed under seismic excitations in order to assess the performance of the bridge retrofitted by conventional restrainers including linear and non-linear viscous dampers on one hand and the new compound restrainer, proposed in this study, on the other hand. The results illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed compound restrainer in improving the seismic performance of the bridge by restricting its lateral displacement and applying smaller loads to the substructure. Moreover, noticing past earthquakes have shown the deficiencies of conventional restrainers, the new restrainer seems a suitable alternative since it has been successful in dissipating significant amount of seismic energy as well as reducing the internal forces induced in substructure.