PILOT STUDY ON THE HORIZONTAL SHEAR BEHAVIOUR OF FRP RUBBER ISOLATORS
Peng Tian-bo1, Zhang Hua1, Li Jian-zhong1, Li Wen-xiao2
1. Department of Bridge Engineering, Tongji University, shanghai 200092；2. School of Aerospace Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Tongji University, shanghai 200092
Abstract：FRP rubber isolators are composed of rubber layers bonded to interleaving reinforcing plates. Former experimental studies have shown that the equivalent damping, shear deformation capacity and vertical loading capacity of FRP rubber isolators are superior to those of other isolators, so broad application prospects of FRP rubber isolators should be expected. Because former theoretical investigations of the isolator focus on the vertical compression and bending performances and investigations of horizontal shear characteristic and its mechanism are insufficient, practice application of the isolator is limited therefore. In this paper, a theoretical research on the horizontal shear behavior of rectangular FRP rubber isolators is conducted and the relation between total horizontal shear force and the shear strain of rectangular FRP rubber isolators is presented. The nonlinear characteristic of the horizontal shear force and its formation cause are investigated then, and it’s found that the horizontal shear stiffness would descend with the increase of shear strain. At last, it is shown with a numerical example that vibration isolation efficiency of FRP rubber isolator is enhanced along with the increase of shear strain.
2009, Vol. 28 
