Nowadays, steel and concrete grant a higher range of work flexibility, that the use of wood and timber for mega works diminished.īut, there are innovations related to the preservation of wood, which has helped to increase the demand of wood in structures. The wood material was used highly in the construction of bridges, unlike today, where it is used for the construction of building works and related. With time, the stone bridges have proved most efficient and economical due to the durability and low maintenance guaranty it provides throughout its life period. Nihonbashi is the most famous stone bridge in Japan.

The Zhuzhou bridge is the world’s known oldest open-spandrel, stone and segmental arch bridge. China had also developed large bridge called the famous Zhuzhou Bridge. The period was also competitive for Chinese. This made them construct very larger span bridges when compared with any other bridge construction during that period. They had a clear idea and understanding of the load over bridge, the geometry as well as the material properties. When considering the history of bridge construction with stones, the Romans were the greatest builders of bridges with stones. The use of stones gave the engineers ease of constructing bridges that are aesthetically top and high in durability. This is because they possess higher compressive strength. They are mainly used in the form of arches. These materials are also used in order to strengthen the existing bridges.įor a long time in the history, the stone has been used in and as a single form. Incorporation of fibers which comes in the category of high strength gaining materials is now incorporated for the construction of bridges. Different other innovative materials are being developed so that they can well suit with the bridge terminologies. Modern bridges make use of concrete or steel or in combination. This hence was the start of modern bridge engineering technology. The bridge construction with these artificial materials can be called the second period of the bridge engineering. The concrete and steel are manmade refined materials. Many historic bridges made from stones are still present as a symbol of past architectural culture.īut some of the timber bridge have been washed away or are in the stage of degradation due to their exposure to the environmental conditions.Īs time passed, the bridge construction has undergone more development in terms of materials used for construction than based on the bridge technology.

Stones as construction materials were very popular because of its durable properties. During the initial period, timber and stones were used in the construction, as they are directly obtained from nature and easily available.īrick was used as a subgroup construction material along with stone construction. Stones, Timber, Concrete and Steel are the traditional materials that are used to carry out bridge construction. Composite Materials in Bridge Construction.

Bridge constructor playground island 2