Improvements for the prediction of the fatigue life of the deck plate in orthotropic steel decks: A design optimization study

Fatigue is an important issue for orthotropic steel deck (OSD) bridges and therefore a design criterium. Cracks will initiate at several locations of the bridge deck. It is likely that a crack at the trough web to deck plate joint at the crossbeam will initiate first. This crack initiates at the weld root and propagates through the deck plate. A...