In building construction, an expansion joint is a mid-structure separation designed to relieve stress on building materials caused by building movement induced by:
– thermal expansion and contraction caused by temperature changes,
– sway caused by wind,
– seismic events, etc.
Expansion joint systems are used to bridge the gap and restore building assembly functions while accommodating expected movements.
The term “movement joint” has been widely adopted in preference to “expansion joint” as it more appropriately encompasses the fact that building movement results in both compression and expansion of the material installed. For example, when a structure heats up, the building materials from which it is built expand. This causes the “expansion joint” to close down, thereby compressing the expansion joint system installed in the gap. Conversely, when the temperature drops, the materials cool causing the joint gap to open. This requires the expansion joint material to expand to follow the joint movement.
Typical expansion joint
Joint sealant: it seals the joint width and prevents water and dirt from entering the joint and causing dowel bar corrosion and unexpected joint stress resulting from restrained movement.
Joint filler: it is compressible so that the joint can expand freely without constraint. Someone may doubt that even without its presence, the joint can still expand freely. In fact, its presence is necessary because it serves the purpose of space occupation such that even if dirt and rubbish are intruded in the joint, there is no space left for their accommodation.
Dowel bar: This is a major component of the joint. It serves to guide the direction of movement of concrete expansion. Therefore, incorrect direction of placement of dowel bar will induce stresses in the joint during thermal expansion. On the other hand, it links the two adjacent structures by transferring loads across the joints.
PVC dowel sleeve: It serves to facilitate the movement of dowel bar. On one side of the joint, the dowel bar is encased in concrete. On the other side, however, the PVC dowel sleeve is bonded directly to concrete so that movement of dowel bar can take place. One may notice that the detailing of normal expansion joints in Highways Standard Drawing is in such a way that part of PVC dowel sleeve is also extended to the other part of the joint where the dowel bar is directly adhered to concrete. In this case, it appears that this arrangement prevents the movement of joint. If this is the case, why should designers purposely put up such arrangement? In fact, the rationale behind this is to avoid water from getting into contact with dowel bar in case the joint sealant fails. As PVC is a flexible material, it only minutely hinders the movement of joint only under this design. Bond breaker tape: As the majority of joint sealant is applied in liquid form during construction, the bond breaker tape helps to prevent flowing of sealant liquid inside the joint.
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