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(Ed.)
Fatigue-induced damage is one of the most common types of damage experienced by civil engineering structures subjected to cyclic loading such as bridges and rollercoasters. A framework for the analysis of multiaxial fatigue damage using strain rosettes installed on welded connections is proposed. The applicability of this methodology is shown using strain measurements collected in a welded gussetless truss connection of a vertical-lift bridge. Commonly used uniaxial fatigue analysis methods are insufficient in complex structures that experience variable amplitude, multiaxial loading, and non-proportional loading. Strain data with these characteristics are used for the estimation of the number of multiaxial stress reversals induced by in service loads and the number of associated cycles using the rain-flow method. Methods proposed for uniaxial loading and multiaxial non-proportional loading are compared. Results show that non-proportional loading and the accuracy of the critical plane estimation can cause a significant decrease in the estimates of remaining fatigue life. The methodology proposed is anticipated to be used for real-time fatigue prognosis aiming to address critical needs related to maintenance procedures of complex structures, visual inspection techniques and evaluation tools for infrastructure networks.
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