STUDY OF FACTORS GOVERNING CONTACT PRESSURE GENERATION IN NEOPRENE PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS

A LABORATORY STUDY WAS CONDUCTED ON COMPRESSION SEAL-JOINT WALL CONTACT PRESSURE RELATIONSHIPS BECAUSE SEALS, WHOSE PHYSICAL PROPERTIES INDICATED COMPLIANCE WITH THE SPECIFICATION UNDER WHICH THEY WERE PURCHASED, FAILED. TWO COMMERCIAL SEALS WERE RELIABILITY PURCHASED IN A STATE THAT SPECIFIED PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS USING THE NEW YORK PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS SPECIFICATION M38PA. THE STATE DEEMED BOTH SEALS ACCEPTABLE, AND PORTIONS OF THEM WERE COMMERCIALLY INSTALLED. RECOVERY TESTS WERE RUN ON BOTH MATERIALS SO AS TO BE ABLE TO COMPARE ALL KNOWN IDENTIFICATION TESTS PRESENTLY BEING USED TO JUDGE PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS. A TEST SERIES WAS ESTABLISHED TO DEFINE THE LIMITS OF THE TEST PROCEDURES, AND TO INSURE THAT ALL MATERIALS USED IN THE TEST SERIES WERE UNIFORM. SAMPLES WERE PREPARED FOR LONG-TERM AND SHORT-TERM TESTING. TEST RESULTS INDICATE THAT ASSUMING CONSTANT CROSS SECTION DESIGN, CONTACT PRESSURE OF PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS IS AFFECTED BY TIME AND TEMPERATURE OF AGING, DEGREE OF COMPRESSION, AND COMPOUND QUALITY. SINCE CONTACT PRESSURE GENERATION IS THE EFFECTIVE SEALING MECHANISM, THE ABILITY OF PREFORMED COMPRESSION SEALS TO MAINTAIN CONTACT PRESSURE AT THE WIDEST JOINT OPENING IS THE LIMITING FACTOR IN THE LIFE OF THE SEAL. LONG-TERM INVESTIGATION OF THE LOSS OF CONTACT PRESSURE IN SERVICE SHOULD BE UNDERTAKEN TO PROVIDE THE CONSUMER WITH A MEANS OF SPECIFYING THE PROPERTIES DESIRED. RECOVERY TESTING OF THE COMPOUNDS WAS NOT CAPABLE OF DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN THE TWO, YET SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WERE NOTED IN SIMULATED ENVIRONMENTAL AGING CONTACT PRESSURE DEVELOPMENT.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrr/1967/200/200-006.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Paper sponsored by Committee on Sealants and Fillers for Joint and Cracks in Pavements and presented at the 46th Annual Meeting. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Hall, F Kenneth
  • Ritzi, Jack H
  • Brown, Delmont D
• Publication Date: 1967

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 53-74
• Monograph Title: Joint sealers, bridge materials and construction
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Record
  • Issue Number: 200
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Chemical compounds; Compression; Joint sealers; Laboratory studies; Neoprene; Pavements; Performance based specifications; Preforming; Pressure; Quality control; Reliability; Sealing compounds; Specifications; Temperature; Testing; Time
• Uncontrolled Terms: Contact pressure; Quality; Recovery
• Old TRIS Terms: Aging; Compounds
• Subject Areas: Geotechnology; Highways; Materials; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00216263
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: HS-000 708
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Mar 18 1994 12:00AM