Week 3

Highlight

Pressing on the link that has been given, lead me to the youtube videos presented by Prof. Ir. Dr Raizal Saifulnaz Muhammad Rashid. He started his speech by introducing the Millau viaduct bridge as the highest bridge in the world this bridge was built with the purpose to overcome road congestion during summer. Watching this bridge could bring some questions about how civil engineering could help to ease the problem of humans such as the construction and maintenance of the physical and natural built environment. Then it's getting deeper into the most well-known bridge engineer named T.Y. Lin who devoted his wisdom by improvising the use of prestressed concrete. Until now, many engineers refer to his books and journal for making a bridge.

Next, the presentation proceed with a sharing of a video about prestressed concrete and how engineers have done a lot of experiments for getting quality concrete which can overcome the prestress and load from the vehicle. Then, the presentation further with the purpose of bridges being built and the type of bridges. The types of bridges expand into 7 designs such as beam girder bridge, box girder bridge, arch bridge, truss bridge integral bridge, suspension bridge and cable-stayed bridge. However, many factors need to be considered for conceptual choice.

After that, the bridge components can be divided into three (superstructure, substructures and miscellaneous components). Superstructure could be easier understood as a structure supported by piers and abutments which is above the bearing. Meanwhile, the substructures are the component that supports the superstructures such as wing walls and the piers, decks and abutments. Following that, the classification of the bridge could be expanded into 5 types such as road and highway bridges, railway bridges, flyover bridges, viaducts, and overhead footbridges. Next by comparing the cost for maintenance during the life of the structure. Lastly, the choice of construction material should be considered before deciding the material for example concrete, steel, hybrid or composite bridge to maintain the strength of the bridge.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, this video taught a lot of things that a civil engineer should be considered before building and making a construction. If one of the factors was neglected, the possibilities of failure are high. moreover, the life span of the construction shortens while maintenance is needed from time to time. Hence, I as a student of civil engineering should understand everything taught by the lecturers so I can apply it in the future.