Abstract:Based on the primary structural components of suspension bridges with spatial main cables, 55 numerical models of suspension bridges with different lateral spread values of main cables and different vertical sag-span ratios are established in this paper. Adopting numerical calculation methods and considering geometric nonlinearity, the influencing factors of structural behavior, including main cable internal force, vertical stiffness, lateral stiffness and torsional stiffness, are analyzed with respect to the lateral spread and vertical sag-span ratio of suspension bridges with spatial main cables. The results indicate: there exists a virtual lateral span value, which can be used to estimate the main cable internal force under arbitrary lateral spread with high precision together with the reference state; second, there is a lateral spread for equal vertical stiffness, at which suspension bridges with spatial main cables of different vertical sags share identical vertical stiffness; third, there exists a lateral spread for equal torsional stiffness, at which suspension bridges with spatial main cables of different vertical sags have the same torsional stiffness.