Selection and Application of Rubber Fenders for Bridge Collision Prevention

Since the introduction of rubber fenders to China in the mid-1980s, they have been used in ports, docks, and some ships. Since the collapse of the Jiujiang Bridge in Guangdong in June 2007, anti-collision of bridge piers has become an urgent research topic. Some owners and large design institutes have started to focus on the anti-collision engineering of rebuilding super large bridges. As the main product for collision damping and energy absorption, rubber fenders have been selected only due to their previous focus on docks.
Bridge collision prevention follows the "three no damage" principle, and the selection of rubber fenders is mainly based on navigation conditions, ship tonnage, water level speed, etc. At present, the most commonly used type is the arched V-shaped rubber fender. Although this fender has been widely used and densely packed on the bridge piers, it is prone to aging due to its small energy absorption, surface scratches, damage, and easy detachment. Over time, it simply cannot provide the necessary protection. In addition, the product has a low threshold, and many small workshops have cut corners and cut corners at low costs. Some products can even be easily crushed into powder with just 3-5 years of use. It is essentially an illusion.
The rotating rubber fender resolves the force on the bridge pier during collision through a large displacement. It is also a wise choice to use it in some narrow navigation holes. However, due to the high cost of this product, it is unlikely to be widely used.
Based on the above, to achieve good collision prevention results and save costs, a super arch (SA type, the second generation product of V type) combination type rubber fender should be used. 2-5 rubber fenders (or even more) should share a collision prevention panel, and the collision prevention panel should be anchored with ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMW-PE) panels. The formed rubber fender collision prevention system can be set up around the bridge pier as a whole. This way, there is no dead point when hitting from any point. When a ship collides, the entire anti-collision board is subjected to overall force and absorbs energy through the rubber fenders behind it. This combination anti-collision system has a good effect and can withstand the impact of large ships. Low cost (significantly reducing the number of fenders used and having a long service life).