Variability in dynamic characteristics of the Sutong Cable-stayed Bridge under routine traffic conditions

This paper presents an experimental study on the operational variability in dynamic properties of the Sutong Cable-stayed Bridge, the first-built longest cable-stayed bridge with a main span of 1088m. With the traffic excitation being the main ambient excitation source, ambient vibration tests were conducted on the bridge in different seasons. With the recorded acceleration data, the dynamic properties of the bridge are identified using the peak picking method and the Stochastic Subspace Identification technique. The variability in the dynamic properties of the bridge in normal operational condition is investigated. The results may provide valuable information for the application of the vibration-based health monitoring techniques.