Experimental study on seismic performance of precast bridge piers with corrosion-damaged grouted sleeve connections

Abstract

Grouted sleeves are widely used in precast concrete (PC) structures because of their convenience in connecting precast elements. Although the seismic performance of PC structures has been investigated extensively, relatively few studies have focused on the behavior of bridges with grouted sleeves exposed to corrosive environments. Research that specifically examines the effect of corrosion in sleeves on the seismic performance of bridge piers is limited. This study aimed to address this gap by investigating the seismic performance of three PC bridge piers under quasi-static loading. Two of the piers incorporated grouted sleeves and were subjected to accelerated corrosion prior to pier construction, with target corrosion ratios of 20 % and 40 %. The third pier with uncorroded grouted sleeves served as the reference specimen. The main variable in this study was the corrosion ratio of the sleeves. The test results indicated that increasing the corrosion ratio in the grouted sleeves significantly reduced the seismic performance of the pier, particularly in terms of load-bearing capacity, ductility, stiffness, and energy dissipation capacity. These findings highlight the critical influence of sleeve corrosion on the seismic performance of PC bridge piers.