Knik Arm Bridge Revival
Contributed by Daniel N. Russell
A main problem with the proposed Knik Arm Bridge, crossing Knik Arm of Cook Inlet, is that tolls would need to be so high that too few people would choose to take the bridge and pay the toll. This would force the toll to be even higher, so even fewer drivers would pay and so on. So then, it would never yield enough money. Charles Wohlforth stated in Anchorage Daily News (Opinion section), on 9/12/2016, "State spent 10 years and more than $100 million ... on administrative costs and studies" (on Knik Arm Bridge). In June, Gov. Bill Walker killed the project. Let's revive this worthy project, and not allow all of that money to be wasted and lost forever!
I propose that 2 sources of revenue be added to the bridge project to reduce tolls, so enough people would take the bridge and pay the toll. A main bridge support should include a 500 foot tower with topside rotating restaurant, and should include attachment points placed on the tower above the restaurant for broadcast antennae. These additional tenants would provide additional revenues needed to pay for the Knik Arm Bridge.
Another problem is that conventional steel/concrete supports would sink in our bottomless silt and gravel moraine, especially during strong earthquakes. We should follow nature, as taught by Lao Tsu in Tao Te Ching, instead of fighting against it. We should substitute open-mesh carbon fiber hollow cones, instead of steel, to reinforce concrete. We should add quicklime (CaO), as the Romans did, to make concrete that heals itself and lasts for thousands of years even in our salt water, freeze-thaw conditions.
(See:https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/01/ancient-roman-concrete-could-self-heal-thanks-to-hot-mixing-with-quicklime/ ).
I refer you to why bamboo is the fastest growing tree. Bamboo trees build minimum weight hollow tubes to make the walls of their hollow stems with minimum raw materials to support tall structures with wide root bases. I have been awarded 2 US Patents for "Fractal Tube Reinforcement" US Pat. 5928450, and 5707724, introducing the new field of fractal tube microengineering. My patents are on the public domain, so they are free for all to use. Engineers and interested parties may read my patents and consult with me at dnrussellms@yahoo.com to help make this bridge and other challenging structures feasible.
The author, Daniel N. Russell is a Physics Consultant and formerly, Term-Professor, Physics Dept., University of Alaska.