The Bridge Engineering research group at the University of Kentucky is focused on innovative materials and methods to construct more sustainable and longer lasting structures while extending the service life of existing structures. We are part of the Resilient and Sustainable Infrastructure focus area as well as the Natural Hazards Engineering focus area within the Department of Civil Engineering. The group also collaborates extensively with the Structures Program within the Kentucky Transportation Center on research projects for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and the Federal Highway Administration.
Primary areas of research include: Structural composites for bridge design and retrofit; Bridge load rating through load testing; Seismic evaluation and retrofit design; Structural health monitoring; and Material testing and characterization.
Ongoing research projects include: Design of splicing for Near Surface Mounted (NSM) Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) composites; Live load effects on bond between FRP and concrete during cure; Development of biocomposites for construction; Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) for bridge retrofit; Evaluation of different types of reinforcing under accelerated environmental conditions; Evaluation of concrete repair materials and methods for bridge substructure retrofit; Load rating of bridges without design plans; and Seismic vulnerability assessment of bridges.
September 2024
Darby selected as College of Engineering Undergraduate Research Fellow for fall 2024!
August 2024
Group members featured in the new Civil Engineering at the University of Kentucky video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcwWm0xo8f8
July 2024
Paper on Live load effects on top slab of RC box culverts published in Engineering Structures.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.engstruct.2024.118709
Paper on Load Testing and Rating of RC Bridge without Structural Plans published in the Proceedings of Bridge Engineering Institute Conference 2024 (BEI-2024). https://beibridge.org/BEI2024.html
June 2024
Paper on culvert load testing presented and published in the Proceedings of 12th International Association for Bridge Maintenance and Safety (IABMAS). https://iabmas2024.dk/
Paper on FRP repair of bridges presented and published in 14th International Symposium on Ferrocement and Thin Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC) Composites. https://www.ferro14.com/
May 2024
Alex and Nathan Graduate with their M.S. in Civil Engineering!
Trent and Rachel Graduate with their B.S. in Civil Engineering!
April 2024
Trent and Rachel each present research posters at The University of Kentucky Office of Undergraduate Research 18th Annual Showcase of Undergraduate Scholars.
https://our.uky.edu/events/2024-showcase-undergraduate-scholars
Rachel receives Maurice A. Clay Award for Outstanding Graduating Senior!
https://chellgren.uky.edu/maurice-clay-award
March 2024
Cody presents poster on “Confinement of Split Concrete Cylinders Using Bonded Uniaxial Carbon Fiber Fabric” at the 16th International Symposium on Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Reinforcement for Concrete Structures (FRPRCS). https://www.frprcs16.com/
February 2024
Paper on UHPC-NSC composite beams published in Engineering Structures.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.istruc.2024.105885
December 2023
Trent and Rachel selected as College of Engineering Undergraduate Research Fellow for spring 2024!
Paper on Load testing and rating of a PC bridge without Structural plans published in the Proceedings of 14th International Conference on Sustainable Built Environment 2023 (ICSBE2023). https://link.springer.com/book/9789819737369
August 2023
CFRP Rod Panels highlighted in SciPod: https://www.scipod.global/dr-abheetha-peiris-an-innovative-approach-to-strengthening-steel-and-concrete-structures/
