Structural Integrity – Historical developments through millennia

Abstract

In this contribution, historical aspects through millennia of structural integrity development are presented, starting from the Great Pyramids in antient Egypt. Special attention is paid to the history of bridges, made of wood and stone in antient and medieval time, then from different kinds of iron and steel following the first Industrial revolution and finally by concrete, be it reinforced or pre-stresses, in modern times. The focus of this contribution is on bridges restoration, reconstruction and preservation as part of the world heritage. Two case studies are described, the old stone bridge in Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and a historical iron bridge in Transylvania (Romania). In the second case structural integrity analysis was performed in the form of Engineering Critical Assessment, to provide a solution for retrofitting the historical riveted steel bridge. This paper is dedicated to the memory of Prof. Stojan Sedmak (1929-2014), one of the fathers of the fracture mechanics in Southeast Europe. Motivation for our research is the paper published 12 years ago on the significance and applicability of structural integrity assessment, Sedmak et al (2012), which was based on the presentation at the Tenth Meeting “New Trends in Fatigue and Fracture” (NT2F10) in Metz, France, 2010.