Coleman, Jason Thomas2014-03-142014-03-142002-02-20etd-04152002-222326http://hdl.handle.net/10919/31720This thesis presents research completed on the experimental performance of two 6 3/4 in thick bridge deck panels fabricated by the Stongwell Corporation of Bristol, Virginia. The panels are made of off-the-shelf, pultruded glass fiber-reinforced polymer elements, bonded and mechanically fastened together. The testing involved laboratory stiffness tests performed on one deck panel which afterwards, was placed in a field test site at the I-81 Troutville Weigh Station facility. The daily truck traffic over the deck panel at this site is approximately 5400 vehicles. The second deck panel was constructed as a prototype to test benefits of steel thru-rod mechanical connectors. Further, a rubber tire loading patch was developed for the laboratory stiffness and strength tests performed on this second specimen to investigate modes of failure. Both decks made use of a hook bolt type connection to steel support beams in order to reduce damage seen in previous methods of connection.In Copyrightbridge deckspultrusionfiber-reinforced polymer (FRP)fiberglassThesishttp://scholar.lib.vt.edu/theses/available/etd-04152002-222326/