TENSA®CRETE RE & RE-LS – Single gap joints

Principle

The TENSA®CRETE single gap expansion joint type RE is a watertight and robust expansion joint for movements of up to 80mm. It is designed for both new constructions and refurbishment projects.

The main advantage of this joint is its quick and cost-effective installation - traffic may drive over the joint just a few hours after installation due to the use of the polymer concrete ROBO®FLEX in which the steel edge profiles of the joint are bedded, forming a strong, water-tight connection.

Design principles

• Three-dimensional movement and rotation of the bridge possible without any constraints.
• Joints are 100% water-tight and equipped with long lasting, tried and tested mageba sealing profile.
• Bridge movements of up to 80 mm with standard sealing profile (up to 200mm with special profiles).
• Simple and cost-effective installation.
• Minimal disruption during installation, with traffic able to pass over within just 4 hours.
• Refurbishment of old structures easily done.
• Can be easily adapted to different materials and thicknesses of adjoining road surfaces.
• Resistant to wear and chemicals.

Design options

The TENSA®CRETE expansion joint type RE is not limited for use on new structures with adjoining asphalt - it was also developed for the refurbishment of old bridges and for bridges with steel surfaces. Therefore, it can be used on almost all new and existing bridges. In particular, it can be used where structural joints are introduced following surface cracking or lack of watertightness.

Anchoring

No additional reinforcement or anchoring is necessary with the TENSA®CRETE expansion joint. All loads are transmitted directly into the structure via the bond between the polymer concrete and the bridge top surface.

To allow the transmission of forces into the adjacent structural element, the concrete surface of the recess must be suitable for a minimum bond strength of 1.5 N/mm2.

Materials and corrosion protection

The following materials are used for the production of the TENSA®CRETE single gap expansion joint:

• Steel profile made from grade S 235.
• Polymer concrete made from tri-component epoxide resin with special minerals.

Corrosion protection of the steel profile:

• Standard: SA 3 sandblasting, 50 µm zinc metal spray galvanising and two 40 µm layers of top coat
• Clients can provide their own specifications for corrosion protection.

Water-tightness

The TENSA®CRETE single gap expansion joint is 100% water-tight thanks to the many years of development devoted to mageba’s sealing profile. This sealing profile, with its special 5-point sealing system, has been in use on all mageba’s TENSA®MODULAR expansion joints for over 20 years, and has a long track record in structures all over the world.

Should the sealing profile become damaged by external mechanical factors, it can be replaced it in a quick and cost-effective manner.

Long-lasting quality

Numerous single gap expansion joints using polymer concrete as a bonding material have been successfully in use under heavy traffic conditions for many years.In addition to the excellent material properties of ROBO®FLEX, the following points also ensure the high quality and durability of the joint:

• Qualified staff with many years of experience
• Process-oriented Quality Assurance (ISO 9001 / EN 29001)
• Professional installation on the bridge

Tried, tested and approved

The polymer concrete ROBO®FLEX has undergone extensive testing with regard to wear and tear, loading and durability, conducted in collaboration with the University of Innsbruck (Austria). The tests showed that ROBO®FLEX is capable of surviving 2x106 load cycles at loads of up to 160 kN without failure.

The durability of the TENSA®CRETE expansion joints has since been proven on numerous bridges for over 10 years.