Analysis of compression of

hollow circular elastomeric

bearings
M. C. Constantinou and AUaoua Kartoum
Department of Civil Engineering, State of University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY
14260, USA
J. M . Kelly
Department of Civil Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
(Received June 1990; revised September 1990)

Seismic isolation is a design technique in which structures are

mounted on horizontally flexible elements which shift the natural
frequency of the structure to l o w values and enhance damping.
Elastomeric bearings, made of interleaved rubber layers and steel
plates, respresent horizontally flexible elements commonly used in
seismic isolation. Design formulae for elastomeric bearings already
exist but do not account for the possible significant effects of central
holes in large elastomeric units. In this paper, analytic expressions for
the compression modulus and maximum shear strain due to compression of hollow circular bearings are presented. It is shown that
existence of holes results in reduction of compression modulus and
substantial increase in shear strains.

Keywords: compressibility, compression modulus,

hollow circular bearings, rubber, shear strain
Multilayer elastomeric bearings are composite elements
consisting of thin layers of natural or synthetic rubber
bonded to steel plates. These elements offer little
resistance to shearing by virtue of the low shear modulus
of rubber. Furthermore, they are capable of withstanding very high compressive loads with small axial deformations as a result of the large bulk modulus of rubber
and large shape factor of the individual rubber layers.
Elastomeric bearings have been widely used to isolate
buildings from ground-borne noise and as bridge bearings for accommodating thermal expansions and creep
and shrinkage of concrete in bridges ~. The most recent
and interesting application of elastomeric bearings has
been in the seismic isolation of buildings and bridge
structures 2"3. Currently, over a hundred structures
worldwide are supported by rubber bearings for seismic
protection. Most of these bearings are circular in shape.
Some of the large bearings have a central hole which
allows for penetration of heat in the curing process in
which the rubber layers bond to the steel plates 3.
Elastomeric bearings in applications of seismic isolation are subjected to a combination of axial load and
large lateral displacement (shearing). The steel plates
play no role in the design process and are generally considered to be rigid. Accordingly, the analysis is
restricted to a typical rubber layer which is bonded to
rigid plates. The bonded rubber layer usually has a high
shape factor (ratio of loaded area to area free to bulge)
so that the state of stress is essentially a state of

elastomer,

hydrostatic compression and pure shear 1. The maximum shear strain, caused by the combined effect of
compression and lateral displacement, is considered the
most consistent measure of potential fatigue failure and
potential delamination of the bearing. Design specifications for elastomeric bridge bearings recognize this fact
and restrict the value of the shear strain within specified
limits. In the British specification BE 1/764 this limit is
related to the elongation at break of the elastomer.
Designers of seismic isolation bearings in the United
States and New Zealand have used an adaptation of the
BE 1/76 specification 5.
The BE 1/76 is one of the most widely used
elastomeric bearing specifications in the world. It provides simple analytical expressions for the calculation of
shear strains and vertical bearing displacements. These
expressions are based on an approximate theoretical
treatment with empirical modifications of circular and
strip bonded rubber blocks under compression which
was developed by Gent and Lindley 6. The theory gives
simple expressions for the shear strain and compression
modulus (the ratio of average compressive stress to
average compressive strain) which is used in the calculation of the vertical bearing displacement. The solution of
Gent and Lindley assumes incompressible material; the
compressibility being accounted for in an approximate
way which is adopted in BE 1/76 as well as in the new
British Standard BS54007.
In this paper we present an approximate analytical

0141-0296/92/020103-09
1992 Buttervcorth-Heinemann Ltd

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

103

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

solution of the compression of bonded hollow circular

elastomeric pads. The solution accounts for the finite
compression modulus of rubber. Analytical expressions
for the compression modulus and shear strain are
presented. The accuracy of the approximate solution is
verified by comparison with results of finite element
analyses for natural rubber blocks of hardness in the
range 30 to 70 IRHD (international rubber hardness
degrees) and shape factor in the range of 5 to 15. This
almost covers the complete range of interest in applications of base isolation.
The results on the shear strain of the hollow circular
bearing have important implications for design. It is
shown that the maximum shear strain in a hollow circular bearing is significantly larger than the strain in a
circular bearing of the same shape factor and that the
commonly used formula of BE 1/76 specification
grossly underestimates its value.

At any point the normal stresses are identical

or = ao = az = - p ( r )

Horizontal plane sections remain plane

Furthermore, the condition of axisymmetry requires that

the shear stresses r,0 and ro~ and the displacement in the
circumferential direction, Uo, are zero.
The first assumption results in the following expression for the radial displacement
Ur(r, z) = Uo(r)

1-

(2)

in which U0 is the displacement at mid-height of the

elastomeric layer and t is the layer height (see F i g u r e 1).
Consideration of equilibrium of an infinitesimal element
of height t and use of the second assumption results in

Basic assumptions

tdp

Rubber exhibits a nonlinear, viscoelastic and thixotropic

behaviour I. While modelling certain aspects of this
behaviour is possible and attempts have been made in
this respect (e.g. References 8 and 9), such solutions
cannot be expressed in a form that is readily usable by
designers. Nearly all analyses of elastomeric bearings
assume linear elastic, isotropic behaviour and infinitesimal strains. Even under these assumptions exact
analytical solutions are very difficult and the authors are
aware of only one such solution for circular bonded
pads J0. The solution is in terms of an infinite series of
Bessel functions.
In the solution presented in this paper, infinitesimal
strains and linear elastic behaviour are assumed. Furthermore, certain assumptions, originating from physical
observations, are made. Considering an axisyrnmetric
bonded elastomeric layer subjected to compressive load
as shown in F i g u r e 1, the following assumptions are
made

(l)

Lz . . . .
2 dr

(3)

where ,z is the shear stress at the bonded interface.

Using the constitutive relation and utilizing the third
assumption and equation (3)
t 2 ap
Uo(r) -

(4)

8G dr

where G is the shear modulus. The dilatational constitutive relationship together with the first assumption
and equation (4) is used to arrive at an equation for p
d9

1 dp

dr 2 + r dr

12G

12G
t2 ~c

t2K P =

(5)

where K is the bulk modulus and Ec is the average compressive strain

Points laying on a vertical axis assume on deformation a parabolic shape

e~ = -

(6)

P
r

~\
I

I
I

J
]

L
F
a

J-I

-2A

D =2R

B-SR.

Figure 1 Vertical sections through bonded circular and hollow circular rubber pads

104

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

L
V

_1
o

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

The boundary condition for equation (5) is p = 0 at the

free surface.
The validity of the three assumptions and the individual errors they introduce have been studied by Koh
and Kelly n for the case of a rectangular bonded layer.
Direct solutions obtained without the use of the first two
assumptions were used to verify the validity of these
assumptions for a nearly incompressible material. The
third assumption was shown to introduce a small global
equilibrium error which was estimated to be negligible
for the typical material properties and geometry of
elastomeric isolation bearings. We accept that these
assumptions are reasonable and we shall only investigate
the combined error they introduce to quantities of interest in the design of elastomeric isolation bearings.

100

p(r)=Ke~ 1

l($r/R)
]
~
j

(7)

where 10 is the modified Bessel function of first kind

and order zero and

(4~a_/ 1/2
= s

(8)

S is the shape factor, defined as the loaded crosssectional area divided by the area free to bulge
D
S = -4t

(9)

Using equations (3) and (7) the shear stress at the

bonded interface is derived, from which the maximum
value of shear strain "rrz is determined to be
% =

Ke~# I~(~)
4GS Io(~)
-

(10)

"

in which 11 is the modified Bessel function of first kind

and order one.
In the limit of small # (nearly incompressible material)
the asymptotic expansion of equation (10) takes the form
3%-6Sec-36S 3 ~

(11)

The leading term in this equation is identical to the expression given in the widely used BE 1/76
specification4. The fact that the correction term in

BE 1/'76

80

=o
0

5
X

6040
&

Ld

&

20

Compression of circular elastomeric bearings

The solution for a circular bonded elastomeric pad of
diameter D = 2R and thickness t (Figure la) has been
recently presented by Chalhoub and Kelly 12. This solution is useful in the presentation and discussion of the
corresponding solution for a hollow circular bonded
pad. Chalhoub and Kelly t2 have shown that the
pressure solution for the circular pad is

ANALYTICAL
o IRHD 30

~llltlllt

Figure 2

lit

iitt

tll11111tllllllllllllll

10
SHAPE FACTOR

15

20

Maximum shear strain in bonded circular rubber pads

equation (11) is negative indicates conservatism in the

BE 1/76 specification. This is illustrated in Figure 2 in
which the derived analytical solution, equation (10), is
compared with specification BE 1/76 and with results of
finite element analyses of bonded circular rubber pads of
shape factors of 2 to 15. Three different rubber compounds were used with their elastic constants given in
Table 113. It should be noted that G is less than E/3,
particularly for the high hardness compounds. This
deviation from isotropy is caused by the addition of
carbon black in rubber. Also, the bulk modulus is less
than the commonly used value of about 2000 MPa for all
hardness rubber compounds. This should not be considered a limitation because the assumptions on which
equation (10) was derived are expected to be valid for
large values of the bulk modulus.
In the finite element analysis, axisymmetric
orthotropic rectangular quadratic displacement field
elements were used. The orthotropic constitutive law
was necessary for modelling a behaviour with three
independent elastic constants. The finite element mesh
was of variable size with a large number of elements at
the lateral faces in an attempt to capture the expected
singularity of shear stresses at the free edges (absence of
complementary shear stresses on free edge). Strains
were calculated at the Gaussian quadrature points and
then interpolated or extrapolated to obtain values at the
nodal points. The results of Figure 2 demonstrate that
equation (10) provides a good and always conservative
Table I

Elastic constants of rubber

Young's modulus
E
Hardness
IRHD
psi
MPa
30
50
75

130
310
1340

0.903
2.158
9.221

Shear modulus
G

Bulk modulus
K

psi

MPa

psi

MPa

43
90
317

0,294
0.620
2.178

142000 981
.146000 1010
189000 1304

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

105

Compression of hollow cRcular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

40.
ANALYTICAL
F.E, S = 8
IRHD 50

20Z
<C

n.

7 r~" "/

A quantity of prime interest in the design of

elastomeric bearings is the compression modulus, Eo
defined as the ratio of average compressive stress to
average compressive strain

O:

Ec -

/ / ~ / / / D ~ o //"

Do - I 0
o,

-40-

n,-

(19)

A6c

where A is the loaded cross-sectional area. Load P is

determined by global equilibrium in the vertical direction as the integral of pressure p(r), equation (12), over
the loaded area

,7i,
V

t/J

"~
-60
z

Ec = K 1 -

-- - 8 0

2 [Ko($,)
- Ko(flo)l
d(Sd S~

(4_~G) ~/2
[S011(/30)]

-r

-100

I I

I I I

0.0

I I I I I I

i i

0.2

i i

I I I I I I I I I

I I I I I I l l f l l l i l

0.4

0.6

I l i l l l l l

0.8

1.0

2r/Do
bonded interface o f the hollow circular rubber pad

estimate of the maximum shear strain in circular bearings under compression. The equation specified in BE
1/76 is asymptotically correct for small shape factors
(for which/3 is small) but at large shape factors it overpredicts the exact (numerical) results by a factor of the
order of 2.

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric

bearings
We consider a hollow circular elastomeric pad of
external diameter Do, internal diameter Di and
thickness t as shown in Figure lb. Pressure p is obtained
from the solution of equation (5) with zero boundary
condition at the free internal and external faces

B, =
B2 =

(13)

K~c [ K o ( & )

K0(/3,)]

K~c [Io(/~,) -/o(/~o)]

-----

(:~)
So - -

s0=D--
4t

1'2
=

(14)
(15)

a =/o(fl0)Ko(#,) -/0(/~,)K0(fl0)
n0

(12)

(12G'~ l/2
\ Kt2 /

S.(48G~m
'\ K /

si=Di
4t

(16)
(17)
(18)

where K0 is the modified Bessel function of the second

kind and order zero.

106

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

2 [Io(flo)

a(sg

lo(fl,)]

[ SoK, (/30)

Figure 3 Distribution of shear strain across a diameter of the

p(r) = BlIo(etr) + B2Ko(c~r) + KEc

-~

K ~1/2)

-- SiKl ([3i) ] \48G//

(20)

where K= is the modified Bessel function of second kind

and order one.
Shear stresses at the bonded interface are determined
from equation (3). Shear strain profiles, determined by
the division of equation (3) by G, at the bonded interface
are shown in Figure 3 for rubber of hardness 50 and
shape factor 8 and compared to finite element results.
The close agreement between approximate analytical
and exact (numerical) results is to be noted. These profiles demonstrate that the maximum shear strain occurs
at the comer of the bonded interface and the inside free
surface and that its value is considerably larger than the
strain at the comer with the outside free surface. It is
noteworthy that the value of the shear strain is not zero
at the two free surfaces. They would be expected to be
so in the finite element solution because of the absence
of shear stresses on the free surface. The shear stresses
in the finite element solution were determined not
exactly at the free surface but at a point very close to it
(Gaussian quadrature point) and then extrapolated to the
free surface. Despite the fine mesh used at that region,
the expected singularity is not observed. This indicates
that the singularity does not extend far from the edge.
Experimental results by Gent et aP 4 confirm this
phenomenon.
The maximum shear strain of a hollow compressed
circular pad is easily determined to be
1 ( 3 G ~ ]/2
%H = - ~ \ ~ - I
[B,I,(fl,) - B2Kl(fl,)]

(21)

where B1 and B2 are given by equations (14) and (15).

As noted earlier the maximum shear strain in a hollow
circular rubber pad occurs at the comer of the bonded
interface and the inside free surface, whereas in circular
pads the maximum shear strain occurs at the comer with
the outside free surface. Consider two circular rubber
pads, one with a central hole and the other without. The
two pads are of the same outside diameter and thickness,

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

2.4
2.2

~ =1000
----

~=4000
_

?~

~ ~ _

~-

=10

the shape factor, which are useful to designers. For this

we expand the Bessel functions in equation (23) for
small and large arguments and arrive at the following
simple equations

2.0

o,_

% z - e c [ 6 S 0 - 36S3 ( G ) ] f

1.8

v-

(25)

k~

1.6

(D

~_
Z

Do
~T-=5

~---~

for

1.4

So 5

1.2

1.0

8
1'2
SHAPE FACTOR So

1'6

2'0

e~

%.-

Figure 4

Ratio of maximum shear strain of hollow circular and

circular bonded pads of same outside diameter and thickness

8S0

'

128S02 3-G
and subjected to compressive load that results in equal
compressive strain c. The maximum shear strain in the
hollow pad will be larger than that in the pad without a
hole and the magnification factor will be equal to
"YcH

f = --

(22)

where %n is given by equation (21) and % is given by

equation (10) in which S is replaced by So. Values of
the magnification factor f have been calculated for
values of Do/Di equal to 5 to 10, shape factor So of 5 to
20 and values of K/G of 1000 and 4000 and presented
graphically in Figure 4. The range of parameters in
Figure 4 cover almost the complete range of interest in
applications of elastomeric bearings in base isolation. It
is noteworthy that the magnification factor is in the
range 1.4-2.2. Magnification of this order is important
in the design of hollow circular bearings. Figure 4
demonstrates that the magnification factor has a rather
complex dependency on the shape factor and ratio K/G
but it primarily depends on the diameter ratio Do/Di.
Conservatively it may be assumed independent of So
and K/G with a value equal to the maximum for each
value of Do~Dr Accordingly, the maximum shear strain
in a compressed hollow circular bearing could be
approximated by the following equation
"gin =

Ke~/3o I1(/3o)
f
4GSo 10(/30)

(26)

for
I(K)

1/2

The limits on the shape factor So in equations (25) and

(26) were derived by imposing a limit of 2 % error on the
asymptotic expansions for l~([3o)/lo(Bo)in (23). It should
be noted that the shape factor of a hollow circular pad
when accounting for the hole, S, is simply related to So

o0oi
4tt

-So

1-

(27)

Before investigating the accuracy of the derived solution

we note that the expression for the compression
modulus, equation (20), is complicated and certainly not
appealing to a designer. A simpler expression is derived
in the next section by applying perturbation techniques
to the governing equation (5).

Perturbation solution for hollow circular

elastomeric bearing
A perturbation solution to equation (5) is sought in terms
of a small parameter. A dimensionless variable p is
defined

(23)
2r

p = -Di

where

(28)

and equation (5) is rewritten in the following form

f = 0 . 9 + 0.12 (~,.)

(24)

Equation (23) is in a form which is simpler than equation (21) and will be shown to be equally accurate.
Furthermore, equation (23) may be used to derive even
simpler expressions, valid for small or large values of

d2p
1 dp
-- +
do 2
p
do

~o = -XKec

(29)

where X is equal to/32, equation (17). For large values

of the ratio K/G, X is a small parameter. However, the

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

107

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

1.5

quantity kKe is treated as a quantity of order 0(1). An

asymptotic solution of equation (29) has the form
p=p0+hpl+

(30)

. .

L~.

in which P0 is the solution for incompressible material

and hp~ is the first-order correction for compressibility,
Both P0 and p~ must satisfy the zero boundary condition
at the free inside and outside boundaries.
The order X problem is

dZp0
dp0 +
dp 2 p dp

kK~c

(31)

"~:
c~
<z
~-

1.0
0.94

H/F
F

E
O
3

0.5

which has the solution

Po = A1 lnp + A2(1

(32)

p2)

o.ol
0

The constants A~ and A2 are given in the Appendix.

The order X ~ problem is
dZpl+ 1 dpl - P 0
dp 2 p dp

DIAMETER RATIO Do/Di

100

Figure 5

Factors F (equation (37)) and H/F (equation (38)) as

functions of diameter ratio

(33)
in which F is given by

The solution of equation (33) upon multiplication by X

gives the correction term in equation (30)
Xpl-

48GS 2

[asp 2

lnp + A41np

Do "~2
F -

+Asp 4

Do

F,! +1

1+--o,

(37)

K
(34)

+ a6p 2 + A 7 ]

where constants A~, i = 3 to 7 are given in the

Appendix.
Utilizing first the solution for incompressible
material, equation (32), we derive using equation (3) the
maximum shear strain

2
%~=6&~

D 2 ]

\O,/__~__ \O,______/_/__/

(35)

( D 0 _ l'~ln(D0"~:
\D,
/ \D,/
Expression 6Sec represents the solution for a circular
bearing without a hole (see equation (11)) and the
bracketed expression represents the magnification
factor. This factor gives values very close to those derived from Figure 4 and presented in equation (24) for
Do/Di in the range 5 to 10. Equation (35) maintains the
simple form of the formula in the BE 1/76 specification
and will be shown to also have the same degree of conservatism.
The compression modulus, Eo is derived from equation (19) in which P is obtained as the integral of
pressure p, equation (30), over the loaded area, A

E~ = 6GS2F[1 - 8GS--~2KH]

108

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

(36)

and H is given by a length function of Do/D~. However,

its numerical value is very close to that of function F in
equation (37). The term 6GS2F in equation (36)
represents the compression modulus for incompressible
material, whereas the negative term represents the correction for compressibility. As Do/Di tends to infinity,
F tends to unity so that the compression modulus of a
circular bearing without a hole is recovered 12. In the
limit Do/D~= 1, F takes the value 2/3 and the solution
for a strip bearing, Ec = 4GS 2, is correctly recovered 12.
For small values of 8GS2H/K, equation (36) can be
rearranged to read
1

E,

1 +4 (H)

6GS2F

3-K

(38)

which has the same form as the corresponding equation

for a circular bearing without a hole 12 except for the
factors F and H/F. It is interesting to note that factor
H/F, which is given by a very lengthy function of
Do/Di, has a value very close to unity. This is
illustrated in Figure 5 which presents plots of factors F
and H/F for Do/Di in the range 1 to 100. Evidently,
factor H/F can be replaced by unity without any significant error. It should be noted that factor F takes values
which are always less than unity so that the compression
modulus of a hollow circular bearing is always less than
that of a circular one without a hole and with the same
thickness and outside diameter.

Compression of hollow circular elas.tomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

Accuracy o f solution
We first investigate the accuracy of the presented solution for the maximum shear strain. Figures 6 and 7 present the results of the finite element analysis of hollow
circular rubber pads. The elastic properties of rubber in
these analyses are given in Table 1. It may be seen that
equation (21) (exact solution of governing equation) provides results in very close agreement with the numerical
results. The error is generally less than 10% of the
numerical results and on the conservative side. Equation
(23), which is based on a simple modification of the
solution of a bearing without a hole, also provides a very
good estimation of the numerical results.
The formula given in the commonly used BE 1/76
specification ~ is unconservative, whereas equation (35)

180- __
EQUATION 21 (EXACT)
- - - - E Q U A T I O N 35 (INCOMPRESSIBLE)
........ EQUATION 23
1 6 0 - o o a FINITE ELEMENT SOLUTION

which was derived for an incompressible hollow circular

bearing always provides a conservative estimation of the
maximum shear strain. A comparison of Figures 6 and
7 to Figure 2 shows that equation (35) exhibits the same
degree of conservatism as does the formula of BE 1/76
for circular bearings without a hole.
The accuracy of the asymptotic expansions for large
and small shape factors, equations (25) and (26), is investigated in Figure 8 which compares these expansions
to the exact solution, equation (21), for the material of
hardness 50 and diameter ratio Do/D~of either 5 or 10.
Equations (25) and (26) have been plotted in their
respective ranges of validity, the two asymptotic expansions compare very well with the exact solution. The differences are not due to inaccuracies in the asymptotic
expansions but rather due to the use of equation (24) for

160---EQUATION
21 (EXACT)
- - - E Q U A T I O N 26 (LARGE sSt
....... EQUATION 25 (,SMALL
z

IRHD 50

. . . .

v%
~,

140-

D__go= 5

Di

/ /

120

100-

_~
IRHD 30

120.
~

~-=10

""

80_

60-

40-

2--

IRHD 75
.,~
bJ

.o
_ , ~ /

~---BE

1/76

"5

20"~

40-

10
SHAPE FACTOR

15

20

Maximum shear strain in bonded hollow circular rubber

pads of diameter ratio 5

20
FACTOR

30

Figure 8

Comparison of exact solution and asymptotic expansions of m a x i m u m s h e a r strain in h o l l o w circular pads

/
EQUATION 21 (EXACT)
-----EQUATION 35 (INCOMPRESSIBLE)
....... EQUATION 23
o O~,FINITE ELEMENT SOLUTION

/
/

120

~>

10
SHAPE

Figure 6

200 -

Do ~10

150-

5;-

//

~"o"

IRHD 30

"o ~

IRHD 50

100

'~
Y

o.

//~..
100-

I I

"800
-EQUATION 20 (EXACT)
- - - EQUATION 38
.,/
o o a FINITE ELEMENT SOLUTION / /
/
/ /
8_0=5
,/. "
Oi
/~ /

tRHD 75
600

80

.--'-,:,

""

b.J

<>

400

50-

"

/o /

75

IRHD 50

_o

,9,
n~

n
o
u

1/76

10
SHAPE FACTOR

15

z/"

l,~

IRHD 30 200

20

20

I I , = r

, I t l l , l r ,

Figure 7 Maximum shear strain in bonded hollow circular rubber

pads of diameter ratio 10

40

J l l ' l l l t t = I = t l l

10
SHAPE FACTOR

'

15

20

Figure 9

Compression modulus of bonded hollow circular rubber

pads of diameter ratio 5

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

109

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

120-

I00
"~,

u~

Q
o

Z /
/

IRHD 75

/ /
/-/ ,,/ /

D
~ -o-- I O

80

60

600

~400

=7
O'3
,m, 4o

'RH5

;."/

r~
Q_
o
o

pared to equation (20) (exact solution) for a bearing with

Do/Di = 5 and shape factor in the range 1 to 30.
Material properties are those of a commonly used compound in base isolation bearings 12. Evidently, equation
(38) provides a very good approximation to the compression modulus. The error in this case is less than
about 8 % of the exact result.

2800
EQUATION 20 (EXACT)
- - - - E Q U A T I O N ,38
o oa FIN/TE ELEMENT SOLUTION / /

. IRHD 30
-200
20

0 llllrlfllllll~liJfFr
5

iii1~1~f1111111
10
15
SHAPE FACTOR S

,,f~l

0
20

Figure 10

C o m p r e s s i o n m o d u l u s o f b o n d e d h o l l o w circular rubber pads o f d i a m e t e r ratio 10

1600EQUATION 20 (EXACT)
- - - - EQUATION 38
n

G = 1 . 4 MPo
K = 2 0 7 0 MPo

1200'

~ f

D--o-5
Di -

-- "

J i

///./~

:~)-J~(/3
o

/ i

800

Z
o

n,n
0
0

400

10

15

SHAPE FACTOR

20

215

310

Figure 1 1 C o m p a r i s o n o f e x a c t s o l u t i o n and r e c o m m e n d e d
(equation (38)) for the compression modulus of a hollow circular

pad

the magnification factor which does not account for the

dependency of this factor on the shape factor (see Figure

4).
Figures 9 and 10 compare results of finite element
analysis of the compression modulus to results predicted
by equations (20) (exact solution) and (38), in which a
unit value was used for the factor H/F. Evidently, equation (20) gives results in excellent agreement with the
numerical results. The approximate expression given by
equation (38) underestimates the exact solution but by a
very small amount for the softer materials. It should be
noted that when the compression modulus is
underestimated the average compressive and maximum
shear strains are overestimated. It is, thus, conservative.
The accuracy of the simple equation (38) is further investigated in Figure 11 in which equation (38) is corn-

110

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

Conclusions
Large circular elastomeric bearings in applications of
base isolation are constructed with a central hole which
allows for the penetration of heat in the curing process.
Two important quantities for the design of such bearings
are the compression modulus and the maximum shear
strain due to compression at the bonded interface. In this
paper, expressions for these quantities are derived and
their accuracy is investigated by comparison to finite
element results.
It is concluded that;
The exact solution for the compression modulus,
equation (20) in terms of Bessel functions, is very accurate. However, it is in a very complicated form that
may not be appealing to designers.
The asymptotic expansion for the compression
modulus, equation (38), is in a very simple form and
gives accurate results with an error of less than 10% of
exact for typical material properties and shape factor in
the range 1 to 30. Equation (38) always underestimates
the exact results (conservative).
The compression modulus of hollow circular pads is
less than that of circular pads without a hole and of the
same thickness and outside diameter. For incompressible material the reduction factor, F in equation
(38), varies between 2/3 and 1 depending on the
diameter ratio Do/Di. For compressible material with
typical values of shape factor (larger than 10), the correction term (see equation (38)) dominates so that the
compression modulus could be very accurately
calculated from the solution of the circular bearing
without a hole (presented by Chalhoub and Kelly J2) and
using the shape factor of the hollow bearing.
The maximum shear strain due to compression of a
hollow circular bearing is much larger than that in bearings without a hole and subjected to equal compressive
strain. The commonly used formula of BE 1/76
specification is unconservative for such bearings.
The exact solution for the maximum shear strain,
equation (21), provides conservative results with an error
of less than 10% of the finite element results. Equation
(23), which is based on a simple modification of the
solution of a bearing without a hole, provides results in
very close agreement to those of equation (21). Equation
(23) is, however, in a form simpler than that of equation
(21).
The asymptotic expansions of equation (23) provide
accurate results on the maximum shear strain. These
asymptotic expansions give conservative results at large
shape factors.
Equation (35), which gives the maximum shear strain
in a hollow bearing of incompressible material, always
provides a conservative estimate of the exact result. The
degree of conservatism in equation (35) is the same as
that in the formula of specification BE 1/76 as applied
to circular bearings without a hole. It is recommended

Compression of hollow circular elastomeric bearings: M. C. Constantinou et al.

that equation (35) be used in the design of hollow circular bearings.

References
1 Stanton, J. F. and Roeder, C. W. 'Elastomeric bearings design, construction and materials', NCHRP Report 248 Transportation
Research Board, Washington, DC, 1982
2 Buckle, I. G. 'Development and application of base isolation and
passive energy dissipation: a world overview', Proc. of ATC-17
Seminar on Base Isolation and Passive Energy Dissipation, Applied
Technology Council, San Francisco, CA, 1986, 153-174
3 Kelly, J. M. 'Base Isolation in Japan, 1988', Report No.
UCB/EERC-88/20, Earthquake Engineering Research Center,
University of California, Berkeley, CA, 1988
4 'Design requirements for elastomeric bridge bearings', Technical
Memorandum BE 1/76, Highways Directorate, Department of Environment, Great Britain, 1976
5 Tarics, A. G., Way, D. and Kelly, J. M. 'The implementation of base
isolation for the Foothill Communities law and justice center', Report
to the National Science Foundation; Base Isolation Consultants Inc.,
San Francisco, CA, 1984
6 Gent, A. N. and Lindley, P. B. 'The compression of bonded rubber
blocks', Proc. Inst. Mech. Engrs., 1959, 173, 111-222
7 British Standards Institution, BS5400: Steel, concrete and composite
bridges, Part 9: bridge bearings, 1983
8 Simo, J. and Kelly, J. M. 'Finite element analysis of the stability of
multilayer elastomeric bearings', Eng. Struct., 1984, 6, 162-174
9 Seki, W., Fukahori, Y., Iseda, Y. and Matsunaga, T. 'A largedeformation finite-element analysis of multilayer elastomeric bearings', Rubber Chemistry and Technol., 1987, 6 (5), 856-869
10 Moghe, S, R. and Neff, H. F. 'Elastic deformations of constrained
cylinders', J. Appl. Mech. ASME, 1971, 38, 393-399
11 Koh, C. G. and Kelly, J. M. 'Compression stiffness of bonded square
layers of nearly incompressible material', Eng. Struct., 1989, 11,
9-15
12 Chalhoub, M. S. and Kelly, J. M. 'Effect of compressibility on the
stiffness of cylindrical base isolation bearings', Int. J. Solids Struct.,
1990, 26(7), 743-760
13 Payne, A. R. and Scott, J. R. Engineering design with rubber,
MacLaren and Sons, London, 1960
14 Gent, A. N., Henry, R. L. and Roxbury, M. L. 'Interracial stresses
for bonded rubber blocks in compression and shear', J. Appl. Mech.,
ASME, 1974, 41, 855-859

Appendix

--

f Dl + D2 1

At = 12GS2,cllnfDo~ I

(A1)

A2 = 12GS2ecD2

(A2)

D~ -

(A3)

l
D2 -

(A4)

A3 = A lD2/4

(A5)

A4 = C1DE

(A6)

A5 = -A2D2/16

(A7)

A6 = (A2 - AI)D2/4

(A8)

A 7 = C2D 2

(A9)

(22 =A~
4

3A2
16

(A10)

~xDo/ L

~xOi/

/ \-~,)

4 \ D, J

+3A24 -A'I/41n(D-~ )

Eng. Struct. 1992, Vol. 14, No 2

(All,

111