METHOD OF PREVENTING ICE PILING AND REDUCING ICE LOADS ON BRIDGE PIERS AT DEBACLING Russian patent published in 2002 - IPC

FIELD: bridge building. SUBSTANCE: invention relates to methods of decreasing ice loads on bridge piers at debacling. Slots in form of grid with rhomboid cells are cut in ice field before debacle. Acute angles of cells are pointed to midchannel. Grid components are potentially movable and stationary rhombuses enclosing bridge piers which serve as consolidating ice aprons at ice piling breaking the ice and moving ice blocks along ice cutting edges forcing them out into inter-pier space at higher velocity of spring water. Length of diagonal field from upper side is 150-500 m, and from lower side is (1-2)B where B is width of ice coverage, depth of cutting is 2/3 of ice thickness, width is not greater than width of wheel or track of ice cutting machine, and distance between axes of cut slots is 10-15 m. Angle of slot cutting relative to longitudinal axis of river on section of bridge is 15-30 deg. Advantage of proposed method as compared with other methods, is that it implements synthesis of ice breaking structure whose design member, along with bridge piers and river bed, is ice field which transforms into stationary rhomboid members at first debacle, thus reinforcing the pier, and movable piling diagonal power field members directed to inter-pier space. EFFECT: improved protection of bridges. 1 dwg