ISU researchers hope to press ahead with some break through technology — literally.

Researchers will measure how much pressure a 71-foot bridge beam, made from a new type of concrete, can withstand. They plan to press the beam to the point of failure by using four hydraulic jacks to apply pressure until it breaks.

The event is scheduled to begin when researchers meet at 9 a.m. Thursday in the Structural Engineering Research Lab, room 164 of the Town Engineering Building. The break test is scheduled for 10:30 a.m.

Brent Phares, associate director for bridges and structures in the Center for Transportation Research and Education, said he and his staff expect the beam, which is made from a new material called ultra-high performance concrete, to break under about three-quarters of a million pounds of pressure.

“We expect to see a shear-type failure, which is when there is a break near the end of the beam and not the middle,” he said.

A similar beam will be used in a bridge that will be constructed this summer in Wapello County and should be the first American bridge to use the ultra-high performance concrete.

Brian Moore, Wapello County engineer, said the idea for the project came after discussion of the new material prompted coordination between the Department of Transportation, Iowa State and Wapello County to submit a joint application for federal funding.

He said because of the joint application and the Wapello County’s need for a new bridge, they received $300,000 in federal funding for the project under the Federal Bridge Program.

Moore, who is slated to attend Thursday’s test, said he has already given the manufacturer, Lafarge North America, the “go ahead” to make the needed beams similar to the one being tested at Iowa State.

He said he is hopeful ISU researchers can break the beam.

“The reason for the test is to help development in design guides for other engineers,” Moore said.

Phares said the test can also be used to verify the design of the beam, which is important because it is relatively new material.

“We will also expand our body of knowledge of this new material, not only for the use in bridges but other structures as well,” he said.

Phares said the new type of concrete being used consists of basically the same materials as traditional concrete, but the components have been highly engineered and tightly controlled making it stronger, but also more expensive.

Brian Degen, the project’s research assistant and graduate student in civil, construction and environmental engineering, said the new type of concrete does not contain large aggregate, rocks or minerals.

He said small steel fibers are mixed into the concrete, which replace the large steel rebar poles.

Because of its components, the new material costs about 10 times more than traditional concrete but is likely to save future costs because the beams will last much longer.

Moore said the ultra-high performance concrete is stronger and also more resistant to water and salt than typical bridge building materials.