An example of structural validation as a result of dynamic identification of a new bridge over the river Fella in Dogna (Italy) follows. The structure, a prestressed concrete continuous beam, bypasses, with its two spans of 37.5 m each, the wide alluvial riverbed. The bridge, which rises in an high level seismic area, has been isolated by the use of elastomeric isolators able to reduce the heavy stresses of seismic origin. The dynamic tests performed on the bridge and the followed structural identification by means of model updating have led to a «zero reading» of the dynamic characteristics, to be used as reference data for subsequent analysis of degradation, especially following a seismic event. It will be shown a parallel between the stresses identified in the structural model (based on which the bridge was built) and the resulting model from dynamic identification, to extract a possible criterion for structural validation after the construction.
