Types of Movement Joints

April 2, 2013 | By Admin | 0 Comments

Expansion Joint

• An initial gap should be provided between adjoining parts of the structure to accommodate either expansion
or contraction of the structure. (BS 8007)
• Has no restraint to movement.
• Complete discontinuity in both reinforcement and concrete (BS 8007) (BS 8110 – 2); but transfer of shear
across the joint can be achieved by the use of dowel bars with one end of the dowel free to slide. (CIRIA Report
146)
• Water-stops, joint fillers and joint sealing compounds are essential.(BS 8007)
• Used for elements exposed to significant temperature variation (notably solar gain) such as roof slabs,
footbridges, and ground-bearing slabs outdoors. (CIRIA Report 146)

Hinged Joint

• Can be formed either by completely separating the two elements, placing one element in a groove in the
other, or by crossing the reinforcement at the junction of the two elements. (BS 8007)
• Transmits thrust and shearing force; but permits rotation with minimal restraint. (BS 8007)
• Required to prevent the occurrence of reverse moments or of undesirable restraint, for example in a three-
hinged portal. (BS 8110 – 2)
• The hinged joint is more common in bridges, particularly arches, than in building structures. It has been used
in a few structures to provide effectively ‘pinned’ concrete connections, for example to minimize potentially
damaging horizontal shear forces in the lowest lift of columns carrying floors down to a progressively-post-
tensioned long-span transfer girder. (CIRIA Report 146)

Sliding Joint

• Complete discontinuity in both reinforcement and concrete.

• Allows relative movement in the plane of the joint.
• Special provision is made to facilitate relative movement in the plane of the joint. (BS 8007)
• Generally used in precast concrete structures and in larger civil engineering structures such as bridges,
although sliding joints are also found at the wall-floor and wall-roof junctions in water-retaining structures. (CIRIA
Report 146)

Settlement Joint
• Permits adjacent members or structures to settle or deflect relative to each other in cases, for example,
where movements of the foundations of a building are likely due to mining subsidence. (BS 8110 – 2)

Complete Contraction Joint

• No initial gap between the concrete on both sides of the joint. Joint may be formed either by using stop ends
with no initial gap between the concrete or by using a crack inducer (or other means) to reduce the depth of the
concrete section by at least 25 % and accommodate contraction of the concrete. (BS 8007)
• Has no restraint to movement.
• Complete discontinuity in both reinforcement and concrete.
• Water-stops and joint sealing compounds are essential.
• Transfer of shear across the joint can be achieved by the use of dowel bars with one end of the dowel free
to slide.
• It is most commonly used in water-containing structures to deal with early-age thermal movements and
irreversible drying shrinkage, where no load transfer or equalizing of deflection in the plane of the joint is required.
(CIRIA Report 146)
Partial Contraction Joint

• No initial gap between the concrete on both sides of the joint and joint may be either by using stop ends with
no initial gap between the concrete or by using a crack inducer (or other means) to reduce the depth of the
concrete section by at least 25 % and accommodate some contraction of the concrete. (BS 8007)
• Has some restraint to movement.
• Complete discontinuity in concrete and partially in steel. Steel is provided to ensure that shear loads can be
transferred across the joint and or when equalizing of deflection in the plane of the joint is required
• Commonly used in water containing structures, retaining walls, and large ground-bearing slabs
• Water-stops and joint sealing compounds are essential.

Seismic Joint
• These joints will have to be of sufficient width to accommodate the cumulative anticipated movement across
the joints. This may be l00 mm or more, which is well beyond the capability of any orthodox joint sealant or
gasket. Choosing a suitable bridging material for such joints may be complicated by the need to accommodate
pedestrian or vehicular traffic. One approach is to provide steel plates, either fixed on one side of the joints or
loose but ‘captive’ within retaining strips.
Material Specifications for Movement Joints BS 8007
March 31, 2013 | By Admin | 0 Comments

Movement joints require the use of combinations of jointing materials,

which may be classified as:

• Joint fillers
• Waterstops
• Joint sealing compounds
Note: The use of these jointing materials in each type of movement joints is shown in Types of Movement Joints.

Joint Fillers

• They consist of compressible sheet or strip material fixed to the face of the first-placed concrete and against
which the second-placed concrete is cast.
• Since the percentage expansion or contraction of the filler is inversely proportional to the initial width of the
joint, there is an advantage in using a wide joint.
• The usefulness of joint filler is increased if the material remains in contact with both faces of the joint
throughout joint movements.
• Only non-rotting and non-absorbent materials should be used as joint fillers.
Waterstops

• Waterstops are preformed strips of durable impermeable material that are wholly or partially embedded in
the concrete during construction.
• When specified, waterstops should be appropriate to the required design performance.
• It is essential that the concrete placed around the waterstop is well compacted and that the waterstop be
fixed and maintained firmly in position until the concrete placing is completed and the concrete has set.
• Waterstops may be divided into four categories as follow:
1. Central-bulb: There is a solid bulb or wing at each end of this type, which is made of rubber or flexible
plastics such as PVC. The distance of the waterstop from the nearest exposed concrete face should not be
less than half the width of the waterstop.

2. The second category is similar to the first category but has no central bulb.

3. The third category, consisting of surface types of waterstop, is mainly used on the undersides of concrete
slabs, and sometimes on the outer face of walls that are backfilled. To secure good compaction of the
 concrete against the water-stop it should be fixed to a base of blinding concrete or formwork. This type of
waterstop is usually formed from rubber or flexible plastics such as PVC.

4. The fourth category of waterstop is a rigid type and is specified when, as in construction joints, no movement
is expected at the joint but a positive waterstop is required because of the pressure of the contained liquid as
in a pressure pipeline. Such waterstops are usually formed from copper or steel strip.

Joint Sealing Compounds

• These materials (or sealants) are impermeable ductile materials that are required to provide a liquid-tight
seal by adhesion to the concrete throughout the range of joint movements