Communication activities following the collapse of the Morandi viaduct in Genoa

Communication activities following the collapse of the Morandi viaduct in Genoa

After the collapse of the Morandi Viaduct in Genoa in August 2018, IFSTTAR received many requests to comment on the event and the possible risks to other structures, particularly in France. Experts from the Institute appeared before the Senate Committee on Bridge Safety information.

An expert assessment was carried out on the Pont de Normandie (2017-2018) to evaluate the potential effects of the passage of exceptional loads and provide decision support to the authorities representing the State and to the structure’s concession holder.

The SMC laboratory (Metallic and Cable Structures), conducted an expert assessment of the disorders affecting cable structures (even recent ones) and hence the R&D needs of structure managers with regard, for example, to monitoring and materials with enhanced properties. The Laboratory has worked on many of France's major bridges (Normandy, Millau, Saint-Nazaire, etc...). In 2018, six major expert assessments were carried out on cable bridges, including the Boulonnais viaducts and the Île de Ré bridge, as well as on cable car cables such as on the Aiguille du Midi.

This work has made it possible to launch a number of R&D initiatives to meet the needs of managers, such as Shape Memory Alloys for cable damping, coupled fretting and fatigue mechanisms in the event of corrosion; the use of non-destructive methods to monitor the condition of cables in their anchorages; the detection of defects in cables using vibration methods, and new biosourced coatings for anti-corrosion protection.