Effect of Manufacturing Imperfections on the Service-Level Performance of Elastomeric Bridge Bearings
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 148, Issue 7
Abstract
During the vulcanization process of steel-laminated elastomeric bridge bearings, unavoidable flow of elastomer occurs inside the mold under high pressure and nonuniform heating. This may cause the interior steel laminates to misalign or distort in the finished bearing. There has been limited research to understand and quantify the effects of manufacturing imperfections, such as vertically shifted, rotated, and bent steel laminates, on the mechanical behavior of elastomeric bearings. This paper presents a finite element investigation on the effects of manufacturing imperfections on the performance of elastomeric bridge bearings subjected to service-level loads. It is observed that such imperfections have a negligible effect on the maximum shear strain induced in the elastomer. The strain hardening behavior of the elastomer under relatively large shear strains limits the maximum shear strains to values lower than those predicted by the pressure solution. In one cycle of loading, the vertical deflection of bearings is affected slightly by these imperfections. However, manufacturing imperfections can increase the tensile stresses in the steel laminates causing plastic damage. The spread of plastic damage in the steel laminates with repeated cycling may affect the long-term performance of the bearings.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) through the Highway Infrastructure Innovation Funding Program. The authors are grateful to Kris Mermigas (Head Engineer, Structures Office, MTO) and Ben Huh (Lead Engineer, Structures Office, MTO) for their committed support during this work. Any opinions, findings, or recommendations in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsor.
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Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 148 • Issue 7 • July 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jun 19, 2021
Accepted: Feb 14, 2022
Published online: May 13, 2022
Published in print: Jul 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Oct 13, 2022
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