The evolution of the shape of composite dowels

Composite dowels have opened new possibilities for engineers designing composite structures. The fundamental and most important characteristic of composite dowels is the shape of the cutting line. It is important to understand why only one particular shape of the cutting line is used in bridge engineering, while so many different shapes have been investigated by many researchers. The essential part of the process of developing composite dowels – the development of the shape of the cutting line – is presented in this paper. The influence of the steel web thickness is presented, and technological problems of steel fabrication are highlighted. The role of empirical experience from the first bridges, push-out tests, and finite element simulations is presented. Assumptions for numerical procedures are given. The distinction between the steel failure and concrete failure modes is introduced for composite dowels. The paper presents how the concept of “shape” was divided into “shape,” “ratio,” and finally “size,” and how, because of the fatigue problems in bridges, all the three factors have emerged to result in the form of shapes that can satisfy the requirements for bridges. Research leading to the invention of the first version of the clothoidal shape is presented.