suspension

Akashi Kaikyo Bridge “The world’s longest suspension bridge. “

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List of Project, Thesis and Presentation topics on General Civil Engineering

“The world’s longest suspension bridge. “

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Vital Statistics:
Location: Kobe and Awaji-shima, Japan
Completion Date: 1998
Cost: $4.3 billion
Length: 12,828 feet
Type: Suspension
Purpose: Roadway
Materials: Steel
Longest Single Span: 6,527 feet
Engineer(s): Honshu-Shikoku Bridge Authority

In 1998, Japanese engineers stretched the limits of bridge engineering with the completion of the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge. Currently the longest spanning suspension bridge in the world, the Akashi Kaiko Bridge stretches 12,828 feet across the Akashi Strait to link the city of Kobe with Awaji-shima Island. It would take four Brooklyn Bridges to span the same distance! The Akashi Kaikyo Bridge isn’t just long — it’s also extremely tall. Its two towers, at 928 feet, soar higher than any other bridge towers in the world.

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A Bridge Built to Sway When the Earth Shakes

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General Civil Engineering Seminar Topics:

SAN FRANCISCO — Venture deep inside the new skyway of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and it becomes clear that the bridge’s engineers have planned for the long term.

Courtesy NYTimes

At intervals inside the elevated roadway’s box girders — which have the closed-in feel of a submarine, if a submarine were made of concrete — are anchor blocks, called deadmen, cast into the structure. They are meant to be used decades from now, perhaps in the next century, when in their old age the concrete girders will start to sag. By running cables from deadman to deadman and tightening them, workers will be able to restore the girders to their original alignment.

The deadmen are one sign that the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge, which includes the skyway and a unique suspension bridge, is meant to last at least 150 years after its expected opening in 2013. (The existing eastern bridge, which is still in use, will then be torn down.)

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