INTRODUCTION

The joint is the weakest and vulnerable area in bridge design Distress at bridge joints will lead to many maintenance problems, ranging from spalling of concrete edges at the joint to detorioration of pier caps Maintenance work on the bridge should be restricted to a minimum length of time in the case of high density of traffic Hence the Joints on a bridge should be so designed as to perform satisfactorily for a long time without requiring repair or replacement

Three types of joints occur on a bridge structure a construction joint

b e!pansion joint

c contraction joint

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"onstruction joint is necessary whenever the placement of concrete has to be stopped temporarily before the completion of the entire monolithic portion under construction such temporary suspension of concrete placement may sometimes be une!pected, if it is due to failure of machinery such as concrete mi!er, vibrator etc )hen foundations of adjacent parts of the structure are at different levels, as in the case of the junction between the abutment and the wing wall, a construction joint should be provided

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construction joint and contraction joints are provided to take care of deformations due to change in temperature contraction joints, where provided, will be only for a part of the depth of the slab and will often be of smaller width

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+!pansion joints will be provided for the full depth of the member (n prestressed concrete bridges of advanced design, e!pansion joints provided have been unsatisfactory .or highway bridges of spans up to about /0m,the e!pansion joints will be /1m

* copper sheet 231mm thick and /10mm wide is bent to form a bulb in the middle and laid at the joint between the structural slab and the wearing coat The gap above this sheet is filled with a resilient joint filler This arrangement would allow a movement up to //mm .or medium spans, when the movement is of the order of 40 to 10mm, an e!pansion joint consisting of mild steel angles and plates is usually adopted (n tropical climates, this type of joint seldom functions properly due to corrosion (t is also difficult to seat the sliding plate accurately on the mating plate throughout the width of the carriageway (t is use in coastal areas should be with caution

* copper sheet 231mm thick and /10mm wide is bent to form a bulb in the middle and laid at the joint between the structural slab and the wearing coat The gap above this sheet is filled with a resilient joint filler This arrangement would allow a movement up to //mm

.or medium spans, when the movement is of the order of 40 to 10mm, an e!pansion joint consisting of mild steel angles and plates is usually adopted (n tropical climates, this type of joint seldom functions properly due to corrosion (t is also difficult to seat the sliding plate accurately on the mating plate throughout the width of the carriageway (t is use in coastal areas should be with caution

*n effective joint sealing system for a long span bridge must satisfy the following performance criteria

(t must have the capability to successfully respond to any combination of the many types of movement that might occur on a particular bridge

(t must seal out the entry of all foreign material with a potential for producing restraint (t must seal out the entry of free water (t must be capable of absorbing the various types and ranges of movement within itself without being e!truded above or e!pelled from the joint opening )ith respect to the riding surface of the sealing system, it must be constructed of materials which have capability 5to withstand wear and impact from repetitive and heavy traffic loadings, besides durability against petroleum products, weather, etc3 (t must be capable of performance in e!tremes of temperatures for the environments of each particular structure (t should have a long service life, ideally equal to the life of the bridge T6-("*7 %#'&"+% #. J#($T M#8+M+$T TH*T #""'& #$ 9&(D:+% %traight thermal movement &acking movements of skewed joints -rogressively closing joints or opening joints 8ibratory movement from heavy traffic loadings %lab end rotation *rticulating movements