2016年CRI Two arch halves of extra-big bridge over Lancang River connected

 

The two steel truss arch halves of an extra-big bridge over the Lancang River were connected Tuesday morning after two "vertical¹ turns."

The bridge, which sits 270 meters above the Lancang River, is a part of the Dali–Ruili Railway in southwest China's Yunnan Province. The railway is expected to be connected with railways of Myanmar upon its completion.

The bridge, which is also known as the Lancang River Railway Bridge, consists of two steel truss arch halves.

The two steel truss arch halves, which consist of two separate parts receptively, were built vertically² on either side of the canyon³ slopes on top of scaffolding.

"We have assembled the steel truss arch halves section by section on the canyon slopes. After that, we had the first vertical turn to a certain height, and then we had the two parts joined together. Then we welded this steel framework. If everything passed the check, we had a second vertical turn to a certain height," said Xie Shoujie, deputy general manager of the 5th Engineering Co., Ltd., under the China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group Co., Ltd.

Workers welded the last steel bar, which measures 4.3 meters long, Tuesday morning, after the two halves were connected at the crown.

"After the last steel bar, which is the vertical steel bar, is welded, we will have to weld the slanting⁴ steel bars besides it to form a triangle to withhold⁵ the force. This structure is very stable,” said Xie.

The two steel truss arch halves of an extra-big bridge over the Lancang River are connected after two "vertical turns" in southwest China's Yunnan Province, on Nov.15, 2016. [Photo: Xinhua]

After the two halves are connected, construction on the top of the bridge will start, according to Tian Daqian, project manager of the Lancang River Railway Bridge.

"After the connection, we will fill concrete into eight tubes inside the arched halves. When it reaches a certain strength, we will carry out outside construction. We will install eight pillars on the arch. After the installation is finished, we can build the top of the bridge," said Tian.

The main span of the Lancang River Railway Bridge will be 342 meters, and the entire length of its bridge floor will be 528.1 meters, making it also one of the longest arch bridges China has ever built.

1 vertical   

adj.垂直的，顶点的，纵向的；n.垂直物，垂直的位置

参考例句：

• The northern side of the mountain is almost vertical.这座山的北坡几乎是垂直的。
• Vertical air motions are not measured by this system.垂直气流的运动不用这种系统来测量。

2 vertically   

adv.垂直地

参考例句：

• Line the pages for the graph both horizontally and vertically.在这几页上同时画上横线和竖线，以便制作图表。
• The human brain is divided vertically down the middle into two hemispheres.人脑从中央垂直地分为两半球。

3 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

4 slanting   

倾斜的，歪斜的

参考例句：

• The rain is driving [slanting] in from the south. 南边潲雨。
• The line is slanting to the left. 这根线向左斜了。

5 withhold   

v.拒绝，不给；使停止，阻挡

参考例句：

• It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
• I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。