Deformation behavior and acting earth pressure of three-hinge precast arch culvert in construction process

Abstract The three-hinge precast arch culvert consists of two segmental precast units and three hinge points. It harnesses the passive resistance of an embankment by permitting deflection, resulting in a mechanically stable structure. However, the design of the three-hinge precast arch culvert differs from that of a conventional culvert, prompting the mechanical behavior of the culvert to become an important issue. In this study, therefore, 1/5 scale model tests were conducted on a three-hinge precast arch culvert to measure the changes in the inside width and earth pressure acting on the culvert at each step in order to investigate the culvert’s mechanical behavior at each construction stage. Moreover, the deflection measurement of the culvert was obtained at the in-situ construction site. The results indicate that the arch members were displaced according to the embankment depth in a similar manner to the design load. Therefore, the horizontal earth pressure, which was larger than the earth pressure at rest, acted on the culvert at the end of its construction.