Dive Brief:

• A bridge design that uses vertical elements precast with steel tensioning cables embedded in them passed the testing of a 52-ton model on shake tables at the University of Nevada, Reno.
• As reported in Construction Dive, the researchers at Reno and the University of Washington who came up with the design say it allows for cheaper and faster construction of bridges using piers supporting columns that are cast off-site.
• The bridge had about 12% deflection of the supports during the test, which exceeded 2.2 times the design standard, but finished vertical as the internal cables snapped the structure back into line when the forces abated.

Dive Insight:

"Sure we broke it, but we exposed it to extreme, off-the-scale conditions," said John Stanton, civil and environmental engineering professor and researcher, at the University of Washington. The columns, however, wound up where they began on the piers, a result that Stanton believes can save lives in earthquakes.