Elastomeric Bridge

Bearings

THE FUNCTION OF LAMINATED BEARINGS

Honel Structural Products (Pty) Ltd.

Physical Address:
Unit 16, 8 Reed Place
Maxmead
Pinetown
Postal Address:
PO Box 15588
Westmead
3608
Phone:+27 31 701 1355
Fax:+27 31 701 1356
Cell:+27 83 630 21 26
Web Site: www.honel.co.za
E-mail: [email protected]

Structures are subjected to imperceptible displacements and rotations that have to be accommodated to protect the
structure and surrounding infrastructure. The most common causes of movement being:

Temperature changes
Traffic movement and braking
Wind
Shrinkage and creep
Foundation movement
Post stressing
The function of the bearing is to safely accommodate the various movements and rotations as well as supporting the
weight of the structure and to transmit the load through to the structures foundation.

Elastomeric Bearings are designed to accommodate three types of movement:

1. Vertical
2. Shear
3. Rotation

VERTICAL

SHEAR

ROTATION
Honel Bearings are manufactured from natural rubber compounds (chloroprene rubber compounds also available) to
meet a wide range of international standards and design guides including, AS, BS, ASTM, AASHTO, NAASRA.

Honel Rubber is ISO9001 certified.

Honel Bearings are produced with and without reinforcing steel plates.
Steel plates are completely encased within the rubber.

Laminated Elastomeric Bearings

for Structural Movement - 60 Shore Hardness
LAMINATED ELASTOMERIC BEARINGS IN 60 N.R. TO BS 5400 : SECTION 9.1 : 1983
Maximum Total Vertical Load Capacity in kN
Ref.
No.

Plan o/a Height

Size (mm)

A6101

200
A6102
x
A6103 150
A6104
300
B6102
x
B6103 150
B6104

26
35
48
26

C6142 300
C6103 x
200
C6104
C6105

43
48
61
74

D6103 300
D6104 x
250
D6105
E6181

48
61
74
30

E6182

400
E6142
x
E6143 300
E6104

51
43
60
61

E6105

74

F6182

51

F6183 500
F6143 x
400
F6144

G6184

48

61

C6141

G6183

35
61

B6141

F6145
G6182

22

600
x
450

H6182 750
H6183 x
400
H6184

72
60
77

LL/Total = 0,3
No
Max.
Shear Shear
231
264
276
240
337
473
493
429
495
562
758
788
769
990
1061
1103
1020
1236
1408
1561
1800
1800
2341
2630
2897
3000

174

12

197

17

197

22

191

260
352
352
343

382
420
561
567
561
737
780
794

11

769
948
1059
1171
1461
1540
1759
1985
2151
2387

LL/Total = 0,5
No
Max.
Shear
Shear
207
240
252
240
306
430
450
429
445
511
687
718
736
889
959
1001
903
1120
1258
1412
1775
1800
2085
2373
2567
2874

152
176
177
172
232
314
316
308
335
375
498
507
503
645
690
707
658
842
921
1037

4
9
13
16
6
9
14
19
6
13
17
22
27
17
24
30
8
18
15
24

1272

1752

186
220
231
237
280
394
414
424
402
468
627
658
676
802
872
914
804
1021
1131
1284
1596

1356
1520

LL/Total = 0,7
No
Max.
Shear
Shear

1723
19
32

1846

1866
2155
2286

2089

2593

133
158
160
156
208
282
286
279
295
337
445
456
454
566
613
632
565
751
802
922
1111
1198
1316
1554
1585
1834

0
6
9
11
0
6
10
13
4
9
11
15
18
11
16
20
0
0.009
12
10
16
17
22
13
21
17
24
31

94
51

3000
3319

2482
2446

3000
3915

2191
2777
19
0.009
2065
2570

1943
13
17410.008

72

3898

2939

3494

2567

2251

93
51
72
93

4050
4159
4500
4500

3115
3124
3527
3640

3783
3703
4216
4472

3149

2753
2699
3113
3239

3439
22

3315
3827
4084

2445
2337
2760
2897

22
31
14
23
32

Max. Shear Vertical Shear StiffMovement Stiffness ness (kN/

(mm)
(kN/mm)
mm)
10

200

1.80

16

100

1.11

22

67

0.80

28

50

0.63

12

154

2.16

16

206

1.66

22

137

1.20

28

103

0.94

12

305

2.88

21

153

1.69

22

269

1.60

28

201

1.25

34

161

1.03

22

435

2.00

28

326

1.57

34

261

1.29

15

612

4.80

25

306

2.74

21

631

3.39

29

420

2.40

28

805

2.50

34

644

2.06

26

853

4.57

36

568

3.20

29

1148

4.00

37

861

3.10

46
26

689
1518

2.53
6.17

36

1012

4.32

47

759

3.32

26

1728

6.86

36

1152

4.80

47

864

3.69

36

1490

5.40

47

1118

4.15

23

I6183
I6184
Note:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

750
x
450

72
93

5063
5063

4035
4277

4798
5063

3525
3781

Rotation about longer axis = 0.01 rad. At max. load. execept where rotation is noted
against max. load. Eg. 2183 0.009
Max. average pressure = 15MPa
No holes assumed
Max. shear strain assumed 60% (Permissable 70%, but load capacity reduced)
Loads shown thus 159 11 means locate positively for shear movement > 11mm.

4324
4722

3091
3358

32

N.B.: The Table is for guidance only. Since it assumes:

specific ratios of live to total load;
either no shear movement, or 60% shear strain
a rotation of 0.01 radians at maximum design load
After selecting a likely bearing, its suitability for the actual loads and movements occurring
should be checked in accordance with the design rules of BS 5400 Section 9.1 1983, using our
design guide.

The HONEL standard range of elastomeric bearings has been carefully selected to provide
a load capacity range from 100kN to 5000kN. Within the overall mould sizes, we can provide economical custom designs to cater for any specific requirements.
DESIGN INFORMATION:
HONEL Elastomeric laminated bearings are designed, manufactured and tested in accordance with British Standards Institution BS 5400: Sections 9.1 & 9.2 : 1983.
Maximum capacity of a rubber bearing is controlled by a combination of direct load, shear movement and rotation.
Where shear movement is required, the maximum direct load which a bearing can carry is reduced from that when
no shear movement is required. Intermediate combinations may be interpolated, but a final check should be made,
using our Design Guide.
All bearings are provided with a 3mm rubber envelope and 3mm steel plates throughout.
Bearings should be placed so that rotation occurs about the longer axis.
60 B.S. Hardness Natural Rubber is used throughout.

Design Parameters

Shear Modulus G = 0,96 N/mm2

Bulk Modulus E = 2000 N/mm2
When sending enquiries please provide the following information:
1. Maximum and minimum vertical loads, and the corresponding ratio of live load to total load.
2. Maximum positive and negative shear movements in longitudinal and transverse directions.
3. Maximum angular rotations with corresponding vertical loads.
4. Available plan dimensions.
5. Longitudinal and transverse horizontal loads due to external forces.
Also available is the same basic range in 50 natural rubber, which will result in a 30% decrease in compressive and
shear stiffnesses, and a 30% increase in rotation capacity.

GENERAL INFORMATION:
Elastomaric bridge bearings can be conveniently divided into two types - 'Fixed' where horizontal movements of the
deck are restrained and 'Free', where the deck can move horizontally.

Fixed Ends
Fixity is usually provided by dowels passing from the deck to the abutment and one end of those dowels should be
fitted with dowel caps which permit the deck to expand and contract laterally and to rotate.

Free Ends
The bearing at the 'Free' end will locate satisfactorily by friction alone, where no suffix appears after the load given in
the table. Otherwise locate by means of epoxy mortar and check that the ratio of the vertical load to the horizontal
force does not fall below 3.

Inclined Soffits
Some additional consideration is required where the super-structure is inclined or has a cross-fall. Where Ihe inclination is small, it may be possible to mount the bearings parallel with the slope, provided that the inclined component of
vertical loading can be taken on the fixed end dowels, or resisted by the bearings in shear without excessive movement. Otherwise, the solution is to step the soffit and abutment to provide horizontal seatings for the bearings.

Plinths
The contact stresses under elastomeric bearings are generally low and seldom require special attention. However,
where a bearing is seated on a raised concrete plinth of approximately the same size as the bearing, then the plinth
will need to be reinforced. To ensure that the bearing is adequately restrained, and to guard against spalling of the
concrete edge, it is important that any plinth should extend at least 50mm beyond the edge of the bearing, and that
the reinforcement should contain the concrete assuming a 45 dispersion of stress from the bearing.

Handling and Storage on Site

Bearings should be stored under cover, away from sunlight, heat, oil and chemicals. They should always be handled
and stacked carefully.
Damaged bearings, for example wrth bent steel interleaving plates or partially debonded layers, should never be installed. Bearings with differing internal arrangements of steel can have the same external dimensions but all bearings are clearly identified by a type reference number, and should be sorted out and stored by types.

INSTALLATION:
Seating
Where the support is concrete, the cast surface is usually irregular, so the bearings should be placed accurately to
line and level on a 5 to 15 mm thick bedding of stiff mortar. This can be ordinary sand/cement with a low water/
cement ratio, or a mortar of fine dry sharp sand and chemical resin. In either case, the cube crushing strength of the
mortar should be at least 20 N/mm2. Where the support is steel, a rolled surface may be suitable for use directly, provided that it is reasonably smooth and true to level, but otherwise some surface preperation will be needed. Trowelling often seems to produce a bedding that is slightly rounded on the top surface, and it is preferable to screed off or
cast against a flat plate.
When the superstructure is to be concrete cast in-situ, the spaces around and between the bearings can be filled
with expanded polystyrene, or well rammed damp sand covered with an impervious membrane such as polythene
sheet. Extreme care must be taken not to disturb the bearings during casting, and a temporary bond to the substructure with an impact adhesive will help. Do not use an adhesive with low shear resistance. After curing of the superstructure, the sand infill can be washed away from around the bearings, or the polystyrene can be broken up and
blown out with compressed air. (lt should not be dissolved because the solvent may attack the elastomer in the bearings.)

Precast concrete and steel superstructures

Where precast concrete beams are being used they should be lowered on to a mortar skim (2-3 mm), on the top of
the bearings, to eliminate soffit irregularities and twist in the beams. The bearings should be selected to accommodate the rotation due to the precamber of the beams at this very low level of vertical loading, or the beams should be
propped until the mortar skim has hardened into a wedge, so that the bearings are not rotated at this stage.
Special treatment is needed at a fixed end. The dowel caps can be cast in ready to slip over the dowels, but this requires very accurate precasting, and it is then difficult to land the beams on the bearings. Alternatively, pockets can
be left in the precast beams at the appropriate points to receive the dowel caps, and these pockets can be grouted
finally through small holes in the beams. Where transverse insitu end diaphragms are used, a better solution is to
have dowels located between main beams, and not into them.
Steel beams will have to be jig drilled to accommodate any fixing devices, or have them ready attached to drop into
pockets in the substructure for grouting. It is sometimes possible to land the beams directly on the bearings without
using any mortar, because the camber tends to be fairly consistant - tapered plates can be attached to the beams
during fabrication, to provide horizontal seatings for the bearings, although care must be taken to avoid difficulties
due to lateral inaccuracies in level.
With both steel and precast concrete beams, it may prove easier to attach the dowels and bearings to the beams
and lower the whole assembly onto a mortar skim on the bedding on the supports. The bearings can be temporarily
attached to the beams with an impact adhesive, for location purposes only. Do not use an adhesive with low shear
resistance. The mortar mix needs careful control and the beams should be propped until it has set.