The 2014 US bridge inventory lists over 610,000 highway bridges. Industry experts believe that the cost of maintaining those bridges for repairs due to corrosion is at least $30 billion annually. Bridge owners do not have the resources to maintain bridges in good condition. New bridges are being constructed, at the rate of approximately 3,000 nationally each year. Those new bridges must not pose additional maintenance burdens on the already inadequate bridge maintenance budgets. The Federal Highway Administration (FHA) has long sought a 100-year bridge design. Bridges have been historically designed for a theoretical 50-year service life but in most cases remain in service for 75 plus years. To seek design service lives of 100 years, implies that the foreseeable service lives will actually exceed 100 years. One tool that bridge designers can employee in seeking this goal is the use of hot dip galvanizing (HDG) and duplex coatings for bridges where appropriate.

Subject
Primers, Zinc rich coatings, Steel surfaces, Protective coatings, Galvanized coatings, Surface preparation, Acidity, Steel, Zinc, Epoxies, Bridges, Urethane, Paints
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2016
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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