Bonding and bolting angle reinforcement for distortion-induced fatigue in steel girder bridges

Physical fatigue tests and numerical simulation were conducted to verify the effectiveness of cold reinforcement methods of distortion-induced fatigue cracks at web gaps in steel girder bridges. Test results indicate that stop-holes could temporarily arrest crack growth. However, bolting and bonding angle could effectively arrest further cracking, and reduce distortions and fatigue stresses. Numerical simulation analysis results show that the equivalent stress intensity factor decreased dramatically below the corresponding threshold after bolting or bonding reinforcement. The innovative bonding angle reinforcement strategy is more recommended for better reinforcement effectiveness, no damage to the original structure, and avoiding traffic disruption. • Concept of cold reinforcement featuring avoiding new fatigue details is proposed. • Cold connecting angles can effectively arrest further distortion-induced cracking. • Numerical simulation results show cold connecting angles reduce SIF below threshold.