University of Vermont ScholarWorks @ UVM UVM Honors College Senior Theses Undergraduate Theses 2015 Timber vs. Steel Bridge Superstructure Construction: A Simplified Structural, Economic and Environmental Analysis Jack Dugdale UVM College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/hcoltheses Recommended Citation Dugdale, Jack, "Timber vs. Steel Bridge Superstructure Construction: A Simplified Structural, Economic and Environmental Analysis" (2015). UVM Honors College Senior Theses. 88. https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/hcoltheses/88 This Honors College Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Undergraduate Theses at ScholarWorks @ UVM. It has been accepted for inclusion in UVM Honors College Senior Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ UVM. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. Timber vs. Steel Bridge Superstructure Construction A Simplified Structural, Economic and Environmental Analysis Jack Dugdale Advised by Eric M. Hernandez, PhD Acknowledgements I would like to thank Professor Eric Hernandez for his help in understanding the various nuances of the AASHTO Standards as well as his general assistance with questions regarding structural analysis and SAP modeling. I would also like to thank the rest of my thesis committee, Professors Donna Rizzo and Priyantha Wijesinghe, for their understanding and flexibility. Finally, I would like to thank my family and my friends Flora and Linnea for their support and encouragement. Abstract For thousands of years, bridges were constructed primarily of timber. Then, in 1779, the first cast iron bridge was built, followed by the first primarily steel bridge in 1874. By the 20th century, wood had fallen completely out of favor for all major infrastructure projects.