Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
254242 | Composite Structures | 2007 | 9 Pages |
In 2004, the rehabilitation works of the Maeslant storm surge barrier in The Netherlands were finished. The two gates of the barrier are attached to a pivotal point on both banks. The pivotal points are designed as two large ball-joints (10 m diameter) that must allow for both horizontal and vertical movements of the gates. Five hundred individual composite material discs provide a low friction sliding contact with the ball.The composite material consists of a ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene disc, reinforced by a filament-wound carbon/epoxy ring. In this paper, the characterization and qualification tests for the carbon/epoxy rings are discussed. The design of the tests and their numerical validation is presented. It is shown that this combined numerical/experimental approach is essential to obtain reliable results.