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Bridges Vocab
Bridges vocabulary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Abutments | supports at the end of an arch bridge that carry the load and keep the ends from spreading out |
| Spandrels | Vertical supports of an arch used to distribute the weight of the roadway to the arch below |
| Anchorages | securing devices that are embedded in the solid rock or massive concrete blocks that spread cables over a large area to evenly distribute the load and prevent the cables from breaking free |
| Span | the distance between two bridge supports |
| Compression | a force that acts to compress or shorten the thing it is acting on |
| Tension | a force that acts to expand or lengthen the thing it is acting on |
| Buckling | what happens when the force of compression overcomes an object's ability to handle compression |
| Snapping | what happens when tension overcomes an object's ability to handle tension. |
| Dissipate | to spread force over a greater area so that no one spot has to bear the brunt of the concentrated force |
| Transfer | to move force from an area of weakness to an area of strength |
| Truss | supporting lattice work added to create very tall beams that add rigidly to an existing beam greatly increasing its ability to dissipate the compression and tension |
| Torsion | a rotational or twisting force |
| Deck-stiffening trusses | a supporting truss system beneath the bridge deck |
| Resonance | a fatal force to a bridge that is a vibration caused by an extended force that is in harmony with the natural vibration of the original thing. Resonance vibrations travel through a bridge in waves |
| Dampeners | a technique used to interrupt the resonance waves |