Experimental study on effects of environmental temperature on dynamic characteristics of bridge structures

Based on the ambient vibration testing, effects of environmental temperature on the vibration characteristics of a rigid frame arch bridge and a two-span continuous composite beam were conducted.The testing results indicate that the changes of environmental temperature cause great variation of bridge vibration characteristics.It can also be found that the restrictions of boundary condition may affect bridge dynamic characteristics extensively when the environmental temperature changes.The testing and anlysis can be used for bridge health monitoring and structural damage identification.