Strength and Stability Analysis of Horizontally Curved I-Girder

Horizontally curved girders are used in the construction of highway bridges and interchange facilities. The use of curved girders in curved bridges results in longer spans and fewer piers. Due to its curvature, the behavior of curved I-girder is different from that of straight I-girder. The curvature creates a geometrically unstable situation and it introduces torsional effects in addition to the vertical bending effects. This paper presents the analysis of strength and stability of horizontally curved steel I-girder by the Finite Element Method (FEM). The straight and curved I-girders have been analysed in the finite element analysis software and a comparison is made between the structural behaviors of those girders