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Control Joint in Concrete

Control joints are placed in concrete structures like pavements, walls, and floors to control where cracks form due to shrinkage. Without control joints, cracks would form in unpredictable places. Control joints are located where the highest tensile stresses are expected, such as at changes in cross-section or in long walls and slabs. Similarly, expansion joints are used to prevent cracks from temperature changes and allow concrete to expand and contract without stress. They are located between sections of bridges, pavement, and other structures. Both control and expansion joints work to direct where cracks form and prevent large cracks from occurring in concrete.

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137 views5 pages

Control Joint in Concrete

Control joints are placed in concrete structures like pavements, walls, and floors to control where cracks form due to shrinkage. Without control joints, cracks would form in unpredictable places. Control joints are located where the highest tensile stresses are expected, such as at changes in cross-section or in long walls and slabs. Similarly, expansion joints are used to prevent cracks from temperature changes and allow concrete to expand and contract without stress. They are located between sections of bridges, pavement, and other structures. Both control and expansion joints work to direct where cracks form and prevent large cracks from occurring in concrete.

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botch
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Control Joint in Concrete

Control joints in concrete are provided at regular interval to from a weak


plane, so that cracks are formed at the joints but not in undesired places.
Control joints are provided in concrete pavements, slabs, walls, floors, dams,
canal linings, bridge, retaining walls etc.

When concrete is placed, due to shrinkage, creep and thermal movement


concrete tends to reduce in size due to which small cracks are formed in the
concrete at weak zone.

Fig 1: Cracks formed due to shrinkage of concrete.

Need of Control joint in Concrete


Concrete tends to shrink or reduce in size when it starts hardening. This
shrinkage of concrete creates tensile stresses in the concrete which develops
the minute cracks at the weak plane.

These cracks are restricted and prevent the formation of large cracks due to
the presence of reinforcement in the concrete. But if its unreinforced
concrete, the small cracks tends to develop into a large cracks at irregular
interval. To prevent such cracks, control joints must be installed at
appropriate intervals. It is also recommended to install these joints in
reinforced concrete too.
Fig 2: Forming of vertical contraction joint.

Location of Contraction Joint


Generally these joints are pre-defined in the drawings given by designer or
architect. If not defined, they will be in a regular pattern or be an integral
part of the architectural features. Control joints form a convenient point at
which to stop concrete work at the end of the day. Control joints should
never be formed in the middle of a bay.

Control joint is placed at the location of highest concentration of tensile


stresses resulting from shrinkage are expected:

o At abrupt changes of cross-section; and


o In long walls, slabs.

Expansion Joint in Concrete


Expansion joints are placed in concrete to prevent expansive cracks formed
due to temperature change. Concrete undergoes expansion due to high
temperature when in a confined boundary which leads to cracks. Expansion
joints are provided in slabs, pavements,
buildings, bridges, sidewalks, railway tracks, piping systems, ships, and
other structures.

Fig 3: Cross section of expansion joint

Need of Expansion Joint in Concrete


Concrete is not an elastic substance, and therefore it does not bend or
stretch without failure. However, concrete moves during expansion and
shrinkage, due to which the structural elements shift slightly.

To prevent harmful effects due to concrete movement, several expansion


joints are incorporated in concrete construction, including foundations, walls,
roof expansion joints, and paving slabs.

These joints need to be carefully designed, located, and installed. If a slab is


positioned continuously on surfaces exceeding one face, an expansion joint
will be necessary to reduce stresses. Concrete sealer may be used for the
filling of gaps produced by cracks.

Characteristics of Expansion Joints


1. Expansion joints permits thermal contraction and expansion without inducing
stresses into the elements.
2. An expansion joint is designed to absorb safely the expansion and
contraction of several construction materials, absorb vibrations, and permit
soil movements due to earthquakes or ground settlement.
3. The expansion joints are normally located between sections of bridges,
paving slabs, railway tracks, and piping systems.
4. The expansion joints are incorporated to endure the stresses.
5. An expansion joint is simply a disconnection between segments of the same
materials.
6. In the concrete block construction, the expansion joints are expressed as
control joints.

Fig 4: Expansion Joint in pavement

Types of Expansion Joint


Based on the location of joint, expansion joints are divided into following
types,

1. Bridge expansion joints


2. Masonry Expansion Joint
3. Railway Expansion Joints
4. Pipe Expansion Joints
Based on the type of material used in making of joint, expansion joints are
further classified into following types,

1. Rubber expansion joint


2. Fabric expansion joint
3. Metal expansion joint
4. Toroidal expansion joint
5. Gimbal expansion joint
6. Universal expansion joint
7. In-line expansion joint
8. Refractory lined expansion joint

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