Experimental Study on Shear Performance of Steel Shear Key Dry Joint in Precast Segmental Bridges

The joints between segments represent weak points and introduce discontinuity into structures, therefore they are particularly significant in precast concrete segmental bridges (PCSBs). In this study, a new steel shear key was designed, and 3 full-scale tests were conducted. Various shear keys were taken as experimental parameters to study crack development, failure mode, shear slip, ultimate bearing capacity, and the residual bearing capacity of various joints under direct shear force. The results show that the stiffness and bearing capacity of steel shear keyed joints is higher than concrete key joints, and the structural system is more stable than concrete key joints at the moment of cracking.