Thursday, June 8, 2023

2006 Bhumibol Bridges over Chao Phraya River at Bangkok, Thailand

(Satellite, 1,370 photos)

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
💠Bangkok ,Thailand    Bhumibol Bridge     ðŸ“¸ by @vetis.th

Two cable-stayed bridges carry the 8.1mi (13 km) Bangkok Industrial Loop road across the same river at the neck of a peninsula created by a river meander. It cost $290m and opened in 2006. A related project was digging a cannal next to the road. [reduper]
And there is a big intersection between the two bridges.
Satellite

I like how the details on the towers reflect the architectural traditions of the area.
reduper
"On October 21, 2009, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand named the bridge “Bhumibol Bridge”."
The structure in the canal is flood gates.
The bridge was designed by Swedish engineer Paulle Gustafsons.
Bridge 1: "Bhumibol Bridge 1 is the North Bridge. This is a 2303 ft (702 m) long cable-stayed bridge with a longest span of 1070 ft (326 m), 7 lanes and 2 high pillars, and a tower height of 568 ft (173 m). Deck height is 164 ft (50 m)."
Bridge 2: "Bhumibol Bridge 2 is the south bridge with a total length of 1909 ft (582 m) and a longest span of 1306 ft (398 m). The structure is almost the same as Bhumibol Bridge 1, with 7 lanes and 2 high columns, the tower height is 538 ft (164 m), and the clearance height under the bridge is 164 ft (50 m)."

When there is no flood, the flood gates would be closed to force the river current to flow through the meander so that the water doesn't become stagnant. When there is a flood, the gates are opened to allow a higher flow in the river away from the downtown area.

8:29 drone video @ 6:42

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

2009 Stonecutters Bridge in Hong Kong

(Satellite. 1,022 photos)

It is a high-level bridge over the channel to a container port.

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
Hong kong

A lot of crossings in Hong Kong are tunnels.  But the rather unique ramps on one end of this bridge allowed me to find the bridge on a satellite map. The container crane in the left background of the above photo confirms the location.

More than one source says it is now the third longest cable-stayed bridge, but I could not find a date on any of those sources.

arup
It was the second longest spanning cable-stayed bridge at the time of its completion It has a main span of 1,018m (3,034', 0.63 mile) and a total length of 1.6km (1 mile). Both 290m (951') tall towers are made with concrete and stainless steel. The deck consists of two 3-lane box girders tied together by cross girders so that the towers are in the middle.

BridgeInfo
It opened in 2009, and it has a clearance of 73m (240'). [Other sources say 73.5m.]

roadtraffic-technology
[This view shows that the cables are asymmetric with the back span being shorter than the main span.]
The cable testing included fatigue and tensile strength tests. It also included "a first-of-its-kind cable corrosion protection system aging and watertightness test."
"The two towers are in concrete until level +175m and in composite construction consisting of an inner concrete ring with a stainless steel skin for the top 120m. The original concept had a conventional steel structure above level +175m but Arup found that this configuration would be too lively and lead to unacceptable vibrations of the stay cables. Using a heavier composite section instead of a pure steel structure solved this problem."
The decks for the main span is made with steel and the decks for the side spans are made with concrete.
Fabricating such a large stainless steel structure for the upper tower cladding was prototyped.
A 50m (164') tall mast was used from oct 2002 to Jan 2004 to measure wind speeds in the area. "In particular, the stability of the 509m-long cantilevers during construction required special consideration in the design."

arup
"Building a bridge with such a large span exposed to strong typhoon winds posed many challenges to the Arup design team including analysis of wind patterns at the site and mitigating against potential ship impact.  © Marcel Lam Photography"

This bridge was part of a major new route that included a tunnel just west of the bridge.

Falbe-Hansen pdf via ResearchGate

This view shows the dual deck boxes that are connected with cross girders.
redupper
"It is the third longest cable-stayed bridge in the world, second only to Sutong Yangtze River Bridge and Russky Island Bridge."




Tuesday, June 6, 2023

2002 Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge over Lake Paranoa at Brasilia, Brazil

(Satellite)

It is also known as the Ponte JK (English: JK Bridge).

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
Juscelino Kubitschek Bridge, Brazil

Looking towards Brasilia:
Street View, Mar 2022

Looking away from Brasilia:
Street View, Sep 2022

A ground level photo     It was completed in 2022 and each of the three arches is 240m (787') long. The clerance is 18m (60'). [Structurae]

The arches are 60m (200') high, and the total length of the bridge is 1200m (about 3/4 mile) long. It was designed by Brazilian architect Alexandre Chan in collaboration with structural engineer Mário Vila Verde, and it won the contest for the design of this bridge. It is named after the president who was behind the construction of Brsilia in the late 1950s. [dezeen]

It is part of the Mounumental Axis, the main road through town; and it provides direct access to the city's airport. It is also known as the Third Bridge because it was built to alleviate the congestion that was developing on the other two bridges that are over a narrow part of the lake. [EngineeringExploration]

BridgeMasterInc

BuiltConstructions
The arches are made with steel, and the deck was assembled from segments that were built onshore. This is the second source I've seen that uses the term "incremental launching" for the deck assembly.


Monday, June 5, 2023

1995 Pont de Normandie over Seine River at La Harve, France

(Satellite)

Street View, Jul 2021

Highway Engineering Discoveries posted
The Pont de Normandie (English: Normandy Bridge) is a cable-stayed road bridge that spans the river Seine linking Le Havre to Honfleur in Normandy, northern France. Its total length is 2,143.21 metres (7,032 ft) – 856 metres (2,808 ft) between the two piers. It is also the last bridge to cross the Seine before it empties into the ocean. Despite being a motorway toll bridge, there is a footpath as well as a narrow cycle lane in each direction allowing pedestrians and cyclists to cross the bridge free of charge.  
[The grade is 6%. I have not been able to find the clearance.]

mageba-group
"With the main span width of 856m, pylon height of 203m (666'), and the total length of 2,141m, the bridge is one of the longest cable-stayed bridges in the world."

3D Satellite

"It was constructed between 1988 and 1995 and when it was built it was the longest bridge in the world. It also held the record for the longest distance between piers for any cable-stayed bridge at the time. The records for the longest distance between piers and overall length were lost, respectively, to the Tatara Bridge in Japan and the Rio-Antirrio bridge, which spans the Gulf of Corinth....The bridge cost $465 million to build. [419 euros [toourisme]] The main reason for building a cable-stay bridge instead of a suspension bridge was for its improved stability in high wind at a competitive cost....On completion, the bridge was tested with a weight of Lorries equal to 16,000 t to assess its load limit and strength....Each cable can be removed individually for maintenance.....The earth's curvature and the immense length of the bridge required that the distance between the pylons had to be 2 cm greater at the top than at the base." [azobuild, this reference has some construction details.]

normandie-tourisme, this page has more photos

2 of 5 photos on bouygues-construction:
a

b




Sunday, June 4, 2023

CN/IC & US-51 & I-55 bridges over Pass Manchac at Akers, LA

(Bridge Hunter broke on Mar 22, 2023; no Historic Bridges; Satellite)

It is hard to tell from the street views, but I'm guessing the US-51 bridge uses steel girders and the I-55 bridge uses concrete girders.

Google Map puts the label "The Manchac Swamp Bridge" halfway between the two road bridges.

Street View, Feb 2021

Street View, Feb 2021
 
Street View, Jan 2019

Street View, Apr 2023

Some comments on a post asking about the remote operations of the Lake Pontchartrain Bridge.

The photo in the above comment.

reduper
[I-55 is a twin trestle over the swamps, but a single bridge over the open water.]

The interstate bridge was finished in 1979, and it is the "third longest water bridge in the world" at 22.8 miles (36.69km). [atlasobscura]
It is the longest bridge on the Interstate Highway System. Some claim it is the longest toll-fee road bridge in the world. "Its piles were driven 250 feet (76 m) beneath the swamp and with the cost of the span being $7 million per mile ($4.3 million/km) (equivalent to $20.5 million per mile ($13 million/km) in 2020) to complete." [DBpedia]

On sep 14, 1976, a barge allided with the US-51 bridge and a huge section "collapsed amid a shower of concrete and vehicles... That destruction caused three vehicles to fall into the water, and only two survivors were found." [HearldGuide, paycount 2? This article is about how to escape from your car, not about the allision. You may not want to spend a "paycount" on it.]



Saturday, June 3, 2023

1910 Buffalo Bill Dam on Shoshone River near Cody, WY

Dam: (Satellite, 5,428 photos)
Four Power Generation Plants:
Shoshone: (Satellite) 1922-1980 6mw    Unit #3 was replaced on 1991 with a 3mw unit.
Buffalo Bill: (Satellite) 1992 18mw
Spirit Mountain Energy Dissipation Structure: (Satellite?) 1994 4.5mw, wet season only
Heart Mountain: (Satellite) 1948 5mw, wet season only

I wish the federal website provided a higher resolution copy of this photo. This view shows the original powerhouse. The primary purpose of this dam is irrigation.
nps
"When completed in 1910, Buffalo Bill Dam stood as an engineering marvel, one of the first concrete arch dams built in the United States. At 325 feet high, it also was the highest dam in the world (surpassing New York’s Croton Dam)." It currently irrigates 93,000 acres.

The lighting in this view shows the 25' (7.6m) crest added to the top during 1985-93 to increase the reservoir capacity by 260,000 acre-feet. That also added the visitor center . "Atop the new crest are aeration piers which support a walkway across the dam. The piers are designed to help the crest function as an emergency spillway in the event the dam is overtopped during extremely heavy runoff. The dam's spillway, which runs through the mountain under the visitor center, was enlarged, and radial arm gates were installed to allow for controlled spilling. The gatehouse structure located across the parking lot from the visitor center, although mostly below ground level, is equivalent to a 10-story building, making it among the tallest structures in Wyoming." [brochure via usbr]
The reservoir impounds 646,565 acre-feet of water at 5,393.5' elevation. At that elevation, the outlet works have the capacities of 3,358cfs for the left abutment and 450cfs for the lower level. At 5,410', the gated spillway has a capacity of 84,725cfs. [usbr]
CodyYellowstone
City of Cody posted
Standing as an engineering model and example for its time, the Buffalo Bill Dam once stood as the highest dam in the world at 325 feet tall. Built between 1905 and 1910, the Buffalo Bill Dam was one of the first concrete arch dams built in the United States.
Diana Brown: My great grandfather, Edward Martin Brown, died while helping to build this dam. He was in a tunnel with another worker when an explosion occurred. He was blown into the river where they found his body a few days later.
Ann Tanner: My Grandfather, James B. Wasden, was on the crew of the first concrete pour of this dam. Amazing story about a continuous concrete pour back when it was all done by hand.
Rob Jordan shared

I think the spillway is releasing water in the above photo and the left-abutment outlet works is releasing water in the photo below.
Mike Shotts Cody, Jun 2019

More spillway action:
Brian Hoover, Jun 2018

Fred Stuit commented on Cody's post
My Mom and grandparents were there in 1927.
 
Fred Stuit commented on Cody's post
From the dam looking downstream 1972

Brochure via usbr
"Because there were no natural deposits of sand and gravel at the site, both had to be manufactured from granite. Clean pieces of granite weighing from 25 to 200 pounds were hand placed in the concrete. The boulders make up about 25 percent of the masonry of the dam. "

I think this is the upstream side of the dam before the reservoir was filled.
bbdvc_history

Four photos from Shoshone Powerplant. "Shoshone Power Plant began operation in 1922 and the third unit came on line in 1931. The original total installed capacity of the three units was 6,012 kilowatts. In 1980 the plant was shut down due to the deteriorated condition of the units. Units 1 and 2 remain in place in a decommissioned status. Unit 3 was removed and replaced with a new 3,000 kilowatt unit in 1991."
1

2

3

4

usbr_Buffalo_Bill
The power plant near the dam was added by 1992 and generates 18mw using a Francis turbine with a head of 266'.

usbr_Spirit_Mountain
"The primary purpose of the Spirit Mountain Power Plant is to dissipate energy of the water from the pressurized supply conduit from Buffalo Bill Reservoir before it enters the unpressurized supply canal which feeds the Heart Mountain Power Plant and the Heart Mountain Canal. The secondary purpose of the power plant is to produce electrical power. Spirit Mountain Power Plant consists of one 4,500-kilowatt generator."
This operates only during the "wet" season.

Two photos from Heart Mountain Powerplant. "The Heart Mountain Power Plant is at the outlet of Shoshone Canyon Conduit about 4 miles southwest of Cody, Wyoming. The capacity of the plant is 5,000 kilowatts" The power plant and the Shosone Canyon Conduit (water tunnel) feeding it have had signficant maintenance issues.
1

2

The outlet of the Heart Mountain Powerhouse goes into a siphon under the river to feed the 26-mile long Heart Mountain Canal. "The initial capacity of the canal is 915 cubic feet per second. The siphon is part steel and part concrete, 1,640 feet long, and 10.25 feet in diameter." [usbr_project]


Friday, June 2, 2023

1963 1.3gw Glen Canyon Dam on Colorado River creates Lake Powell

(Satellite)

usbr
Glen Canyon Dam and all four jet tubes open releasing water for high-flow experiment - Mar 5, 2008.
The dam is 710' (216m) high. (Hoover Dam is 726' (221m)). Eight generators have a total capacity of 1,320mw. Lake Powell began filling on Mar 13,1963, and the filling completed on Jun 22, 1980 with a capacity over 25 million acre-feet of water.
 
usbr_projects
"The concrete arch dam has a crest length of 1,560 feet and contains 4,901,000 cubic yards of concrete. Thickness of the dam at the crest is 25 feet, and the maximum base thickness is 300 feet....Each spillway tunnel reduces in size from 48 to 41 feet in diameter. The combined spillway discharge capacity is 208,000 cubic feet per second at an elevation of 3,700.0 ft. The outlet works near the left abutment of the dam consist of four 96-inch-diameter pipes. Each outlet is controlled by one 96-inch-ring follower gate and one 96-inch hollow-jet valve. The combined river outlet works capacity is 15,000 cubic feet per second."
 
usbr, History tab

usbr, History tab

Until the Winter of 2023, the Colorado River watershed had a drought for years.
NASA Earth posted
Lake Powell, the 2nd-largest reservoir in the U.S., now stands at 26% of capacity, its lowest point since being filled in the mid-60s. On Aug. 22, the surface elevation was 3,533.3 feet, more than 166 feet below full pool. These natural-color Landsat images show the lake in summer 2017 vs. summer 2022.
https://go.nasa.gov/3Co7DKy
Dave Durham shared

Route 66 Road Relics posted four photos with the comment: "Glen Canyon Dam in Page Arizona."
1

2

3

4

Derek Brust commented on the post by Route 66 Road Relics

 Kasia Suszyna-Miturska commented on the post by Route 66 Road Relics

 Benoit Lamontagne commented on the post by Route 66 Road Relics

 Benoit Lamontagne commented on the post by Route 66 Road Relics

 Benoit Lamontagne commented on the post by Route 66 Road Relics

ReviewJournal, 2004 photo by Laura Rauch
They released water from Apr 24-30,2023, with flows up to 39,500cfs. The reservoir should drop 4.5' (1.4m). Normal releases are 8-25kcfs. "The aim is to have the water push sediment onto the beaches and sandbars along the river, rebuilding them and rendering them more usable for camping."

The Winter of 2023 left a big snow pack so they have been running high-flow experiments to make room for it to melt and to replenish Lake Mead.
Lake Powell was down to 26% of its capacity at the beginning of 2023 and within 32' (10m) of its minimum power pool. [latimes]

NASA, Apr 24, 2023
"In addition to replenishing shrinking sandbars used by campers and rafters, ecologists expect the simulated flood will preserve and restore habitat for key invertebrates and various species of fish and plant life. Researchers also expect the flood to help protect sensitive archaeological structures and artifacts exposed by erosion."