About this article
Article Category: Original Study
Published Online: Nov 06, 2022
Page range: 296 - 316
Received: Dec 28, 2021
Accepted: Aug 11, 2022
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sgem-2022-0021
Keywords
© 2022 Wojciech Lorenc et al., published by Sciendo
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Figure 1

Figure 2
![Continuous shear connectors [13]: a) Perfobond, b) kombi, and c) composite dowels using puzzle shapes that have been tested in the context of [7] project and d) additional shapes of shear connectors studied by different researchers [44].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_002.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=e36f35a0f544a43e5eb78b001f31ffcac1dc22001fa03e86839b4c0c04e728ac&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5
![Shear connection for the viaduct in Pöcking [50] with puzzle-shaped dowels.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_005.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=d218022256b3beb8b1f3070af1309d27ef2fd7e6a7a43dd2dfa43411d63f5a1f&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 6
![Composite girders of the viaduct in Pöcking [50] with puzzle-shaped dowels.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_006.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=a4ed8d71cc1050ffb280105a4d5f29367acc61ae5fde5ec7b9c2b1628e909632&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 7
![Steel part (“external reinforcement”) of the girders for the pedestrian bridge in Przemyśl, Poland (picture from the proposal of the PreCo-Beam project [7]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_007.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=c56e3b89e58947d2fee12216b69d61b486608c2041b8d9f27f317b199dbad5a8&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 8
![Steel dowels (SA shape according to [7]) used in the girders for the pedestrian bridge in Przemyśl, Poland (picture from the proposal of the PreCo-Beam project [7]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_008.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=8809771c431251110c80a984a7607e2531848644e901a376e83c243cdb2152af&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 9
![Fin-shaped dowel [30].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_009.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=a82ba9833f530282363be58c9b4bef6a7e820759af1e92aa3d11ba27128f5d8c&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 10
![Modification of the SA shape (elimination of sharp notch) [7].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_010.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=eeb65af654da31b3d84a32c2b3e511f4f5b81d1f459d7decca637078492e9fc6&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 11
![Modified SA shape (without the sharp notch) used in the Vigaun Bridge [7].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_011.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=b1f2a930e155d0e0347d92705089c2b0914991580a773dcda32982847cde5bba&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 12
![Illustration of the FE study of the push-out test [13].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_012.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=4eddef56d2c01827b52838b4eb8bcde5a82eba5eec2feecb61745b5cf7ae8ea3&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 13
![Assumptions for the 1D1 model used for the purposes of [7].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_013.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=1e34ff21a06fd00392f8f033d9d0f165a253e6e13b61354e1c690a3c985d0bfc&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 14

Figure 15
![The 1D1 model is one of the first models prepared for the purposes of the PreCo-Beam project [7]. The displacement layout of the model with a maximum value (red) of 3 mm results in force displacement for particular material curves according to Fig. 14.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_015.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=8ea89e82061dcf8c2eba7c82383ea9ddd363bba29afc61dfba8e31355dac8dbc&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 16
![Shear failure mechanism of concrete dowel by Seidl [30] (last two stages of drawing from the final report [7]: III – the concrete wedge penetrates the concrete dowel and IV – the fully developed shear interfaces and mobilized the reinforcement bar).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_016.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=9da7191b11245a8262b45cc0a06bad91167f203b75e4d5832b1487f44070291a&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 17
![Comparison of the numerical results for the model according to Fig. 12 with the experimental results of the push-out tests according to [51,30].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_017.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=f1d1e3bd7e0668ddf027a19646e64292e4b39a6b3eebddab48d8425f96e9fdd4&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 18
![Steel shapes studied by SETRA at early stages of project [7] presenting yielding of plane models (reduced stress layouts): a) fin shape, b) early version of puzzle shape, c) one of the shapes that has been studied but was never used for testing.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_018.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=fd2602f99bd9cd0cceed62627a8203ed433fefaf49d766409be58ea754c5c19f&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 19
![Plastic deformations of steel dowels in the region of the sharp notch in the SA shape (push-out specimen [30]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_019.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=f8f9731c3a318ab38e3d77a2526c97b7d845b3d7778e3c21dd9b8ed230f60c91&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 20
![Numerical model of the so-called “crestbond” connector [10] studied for purposes of [7]: a) the geometry of solid model using ¼ symmetry, b) the net of finite elements used in the model for nonlinear analysis.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_020.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=085142ea15976d240c60730d2d7445a5ad2949c97aaba95255e00a18be8b0152&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 21
![Topology of the shapes of steel dowels considered for the purposes of [7].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_021.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=eba8caf5cd4a8e342222c86c242494cdf8ec3c17774302e1d72e1acdac4c64ac&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 22
![1D1 models (geometry of the concrete part, steel part, and reduced stress layout, providing a general view of the yielded steel part) studied for the purposes of [7]: a) PZ shape (also called SP), b) SA shape, and c) SV shape.](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_022.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=22798a5afa754098c026bbedebe38cba243c8b4f492fd6cb4aac3e7a5f6a5498&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 23
![Results of 1D1 models (PZ, SA, and SN shapes) for particular specifications of the FE model: force–displacement curve, material curve for concrete TcCd according to Fig. 14 and isotropic hardening for steel [1]; time of 1 s for the explicit procedure [1] and approximately 0.01 m size of the finite elements (solid elements, reduced integration) [1].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_023.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=9cee076fc16bfb339646cbcf00a89831ab53c6ae85ff0aa52994416d58b8ad52&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 24

Figure 25

Figure 26
![Results of shape optimization presenting the force per unit length versus shape ratio (1D1 model, linear concrete material and linear steel material; RI represents reduced integration in finite elements [1]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_026.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=68656c29fb6446053b9d17a785ec66f0f7421ea4b3d3b91f4efcd4c9a0cb1078&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 27
![Results of tests for different sizes of dowel [5] (later [13,31]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_027.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=c11293a34d0424488572002fc8b4d9e8290af4395ac79047b3fc66fbbff9466e&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 28
![Effect of the size of steel dowels: illustration of ductility δ defined by the angle and height of the dowel [5] (later [13,31]).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_028.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=ab79904d2afc87a4db401fc702eea8c6d536bba723a831118cadd61c4bb3c2bf&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 29

Figure 30
![Results of the optimization of the CL shape versus the SN shape, presenting the force per unit length versus shape ratio (1D1 model, linear concrete material and linear steel material; RI represents reduced integration in finite elements [1] and C1 and C2 represent different contact interactions).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_030.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=565839b82660fd56f04ef722b3edc682f8601273ad773a69d81cdcf29363ee31&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 31
![General view of the CL shape tested in the PreCo-Beam project [7] with a height of 100 mm and spacing between dowels equal to 300 mm (specific nomenclature used for composite dowels is given).](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_031.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=ed208b8feb7aeb393c4eb479b64279f366c160f8e1f5eb85a8fcb9cbfba99e8c&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)
Figure 32

Figure 33

Figure 34

Figure 35

Figure 36

Figure 37
![First railway bridge with composite dowel shear connection: a) cross section; b) fabrication of a clothoidal-shaped dowel cutting line substituting the cutting line presented in Fig. 29a; c) basic reinforcement forming composite dowels; and d) a prefabricated composite beam girder lifted by a crane [6].](https://sciendo-parsed.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/64737a0a4e662f30ba53f8b8/j_sgem-2022-0021_fig_037.jpg?X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Credential=AKIA6AP2G7AKOUXAVR44%2F20250920%2Feu-central-1%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20250920T004411Z&X-Amz-Expires=3600&X-Amz-Signature=9fee8df960719b1dfc879272be47a289c62529a39e5d7f23e4de3ba8bde5333d&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&x-amz-checksum-mode=ENABLED&x-id=GetObject)