Effect of soil-bridge interaction on the magnitude of internal forces in integral abutment bridge components due to live load effects

In this study, the effect of soil-bridge interaction on the magnitude of the internal forces in integral abutment bridge (IAB) components due to live load effects is studied. For this purpose, structural models of typical IABs are built by including and excluding the effect of backfill and foundation soil. Analyses of the models are then conducted under an AASHTO live load. In the analyses, the effects of the backfill and foundation soil on the magnitude of the internal forces in IAB components are studied for various structural, geometric and geotechnical parameters such as bridge size, abutment height and thickness, pile size and orientation, number of spans and foundation soil stiffness.