Volgograd Bridge (russian: Волгоградский мост) is a concrete girder bridge over the
Volga River
The Volga (; russian: Во́лга, a=Ru-Волга.ogg, p=ˈvoɫɡə) is the List of rivers of Europe#Rivers of Europe by length, longest river in Europe. Situated in Russia, it flows through Central Russia to Southern Russia and into the Cas ...
in the city of
Volgograd
Volgograd ( rus, Волгогра́д, a=ru-Volgograd.ogg, p=vəɫɡɐˈɡrat), geographical renaming, formerly Tsaritsyn (russian: Цари́цын, Tsarítsyn, label=none; ) (1589–1925), and Stalingrad (russian: Сталингра́д, Stal ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...
. The bridge and adjacent flyovers are long. The bridge, which was inaugurated October 10, 2009, after 13 years of construction, is a key part of a planned highway route that also includes a future bridge over the
Akhtuba River
The Akhtuba (russian: А́хтуба); also transliterated ''Achtuba'' on some maps) is a left distributary of the Volga in southern Russia.
The Akhtuba splits off the Volga above the city Volgograd (at ), and flows toward the Volga Delta and C ...
.
Current state
Currently, a single span (a second is still under construction) connects
Mamayev Kurgan
Mamayev Kurgan (russian: Мамаев Курган) is a dominant height overlooking the city of Volgograd (formerly Stalingrad) in Southern Federal District, Southern Russia. The name in Russian means "tumulus of Mamai".
The formation is domina ...
on the right (western) bank of the Volga with the road to
Krasnoslobodsk on a spit between the Volga and the Akhtuba. It is the first bridge over the Volga in
Volgograd Oblast
Volgograd Oblast (russian: Волгогра́дская о́бласть, ''Volgogradskaya oblast'') is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia, located in the Volga region, Volga region of Southern Russia. Its adminis ...
; previously, the only automobile route over the river in the region passed over the
Volga Hydroelectric Station
The Volga Hydroelectric Station or Volga GES (russian: Волжская ГЭС) also known as the 22nd Congress of the CPSU Stalingrad/Volgograd Hydroelectric Power Station (russian: Сталинградская/Волгоградская ГЭ ...
dam.
Oscillations due to wind
On May 20, 2010, authorities closed the bridge to all motor traffic due to strong
oscillation
Oscillation is the repetitive or periodic variation, typically in time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of equilibrium) or between two or more different states. Familiar examples of oscillation include a swinging pendulum ...
s caused by windy conditions. The bridge remained closed while it was inspected for damage until the morning of May 25. It was then reopened for public access. To suppress the oscillations of the bridge, semi-active
tuned mass damper
A tuned mass damper (TMD), also known as a harmonic absorber or seismic damper, is a device mounted in structures to reduce mechanical vibrations, consisting of a mass mounted on one or more damped springs. Its oscillation frequency is tuned ...
s were developed and implemented by the German company
Maurer Söhne
Maurer AG, formerly known as Maurer Söhne GmbH & Co. KG, is a steel construction company and roller coaster manufacturer. Founded in 1876 in Munich, Germany, the company has built many styles of steel buildings, ranging from bridges, industrial ...
in collaboration with the
Swiss Federal Laboratories Empa and mutually with the
University of the German Federal Armed Forces The German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) runs two universities—one in Munich, (Bundeswehr University Munich) and another in Hamburg (Helmut Schmidt University)—which focus on the scientific work and the academic study of the German armed for ...
. The concept of the semi-active tuned mass dampers was proposed and laboratory validated at the
Swiss Federal Laboratories Empa by Dr. Felix Weber (
Empa
The Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology (Empa, German acronym for ''Eidgenössische Materialprüfungs- und Forschungsanstalt'') is an interdisciplinary Swiss research institute for applied materials sciences and tech ...
) and Dr. Marcin Maślanka (
AGH University of Science and Technology
AGH University of Science and Technology in Kraków, (abbreviated as ''AGH UST'') is a public university in Kraków, Poland. Founded in 1913, its inauguration took place in 1919. The university focuses on innovation, innovative technologies, its ...
).
In autumn 2011, 12 semi-active tuned mass dampers were installed in the bridge. Each one consists of a mass , a set of compression
springs and a
magnetorheological damper A magnetorheological damper or magnetorheological shock absorber is a damper filled with magnetorheological fluid, which is controlled by a magnetic field, usually using an electromagnet.[List of longest bridges in the world
This is a list of the world's longest bridges that are more than in length sorted by their full length above land and water. The main span is the longest span without any ground support.
'' Note: There is no standard way to measure the total l ...]
*
Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)
The 1940 Tacoma Narrows Bridge, the first Tacoma Narrows Bridge, was a suspension bridge in the U.S. state of Washington that spanned the Tacoma Narrows strait of Puget Sound between Tacoma and the Kitsap Peninsula. It opened to traffic on Jul ...
*
Humen Pearl River Bridge
The Humen Pearl River Bridge () is a bridge over the Humen, Pearl River in Guangdong Province, southern China. It consists of two main spans - a suspension bridge section and a segmental concrete section. It connects the Nansha District of Guang ...
References
External links
Volgograd Bridge experg oscillations via
RT
*
*
* {{ cite web , url=http://www.rian.ru/society/20091010/188229867.html , language=ru , title=Most cherez Volgu, stroyushisya v Vologograd boleye 10 let, otkroyut (Мост через Волгу, строящийся в Волгограде более 10 лет, откроют) , publisher=
RIA Novosti
RIA Novosti (russian: РИА Новости), sometimes referred to as RIAN () or RIA (russian: РИА, label=none) is a Russian state-owned domestic news agency. On 9 December 2013 by a decree of Vladimir Putin it was liquidated and its asse ...
, access-date=2009-10-10
Road bridges in Russia
Bridges completed in 2009
Buildings and structures in Volgograd
Bridges across the Volga River