USDA releases timber bridge reports
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently released a group of timber-related guides.
Inspection of Timber Bridges Using Stress Wave Timing Nondestructive Evaluation Tools provides guidelines for applying and using the stress wave timing inspection method for locating and defining areas of decay in timber bridges.
Recent pressure for environmentally friendly wood structures sparked the research and publication of the Guide for Minimizing the Effect of Preservative-Treated Wood on Sensitive Environments. It supplies practices for reducing the amount of chemical preservatives released from treated wood for use in wetland or sensitive environments.
Field Performance of Timber Bridges, Byron Stress-Laminated Truss Bridge is a field performance report concerning a single-span, two-lane, stress-laminated truss structure bridge in Byron, Maine. The report includes design, construction, and field performance information on the eight-year-old bridge.
And finally, Standard Plans for Timber Bridge Superstructures includes timber bridge standards and specifications for superstructure design for highway loading applications to aid engineers who may not be familiar with timber bridge design. It includes chapters on:
- Longitudinal Deck Systems: Nail-Laminated Decks, Spike-Laminated Decks, Stress-Laminated Sawn Lumber Decks, Stress-Laminated Glulam Decks, and Longitudinal Glulam Panel Decks
- Beam Systems: Glulam Stringer and Transverse Glulam Deck, and Transverse Glulam Decks for Steel Beam Bridges.
To borrow a copy, call Mn/DOT's Library at 651-297-4168.
—Emily Endries