CE 515-Structural Design (Concrete)

Home Work No. 1

Jonathan I M. Buctuan
BSCE-5B

1. Definition of Reinforced Concrete.

Reinforced Concrete (RC) is a composite material in which concrete's
relatively low tensile strength and ductility are counteracted by the inclusion
of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ductility. The
reinforcement is usually, though not necessarily, steel reinforcing bars
(rebar) and is usually embedded passively in the concrete before the
concrete sets. Reinforcing schemes are generally designed to
resist tensile stresses in particular regions of the concrete that might cause
unacceptable cracking and/or structural failure. Modern reinforced concrete
can contain varied reinforcing materials made of steel, polymers or alternate
composite material in conjunction with rebar or not. Reinforced concrete may
also be permanently stressed (in tension), so as to improve the behaviour of
the final structure under working loads. In the United States, the most
common methods of doing this are known as pre-tensioning and post-
tensioning.
For a strong, ductile and durable construction the reinforcement needs to
have the following properties at least:
High relative strength
High toleration of tensile strain
Good bond to the concrete, irrespective of pH, moisture, and similar
factors
Thermal compatibility, not causing unacceptable stresses in response to
changing temperatures.
Durability in the concrete environment, irrespective of corrosion or
sustained stress for example.

2. Advantages of Reinforced Concrete:

Reinforced concrete has a high compressive strength compared to other
building materials.
Due to the provided reinforcement, reinforced concrete can also
withstand a good amount tensile stress.
Fire and weather resistance of reinforced concrete is fair.
The reinforced concrete building system is more durable than any other
building system.
 Reinforced concrete, as a fluid material, in the beginning, can be
economically molded into a nearly limitless range of shapes.
The maintenance cost of reinforced concrete is very low.
In the structure like footings, dams, piers etc. reinforced concrete is the
most economical construction material.
It acts like a rigid member with minimum deflection.
As reinforced concrete can be molded to any shape required, it is widely
used in precast structural components. It yields rigid members with
minimum apparent deflection.
Compared to the use of steel in structure, reinforced concrete requires
less skilled labor for the erection of the structure.

3. Disadvantages of Reinforced Concrete:

The tensile strength of reinforced concrete is about one-tenth of its
compressive strength.
The main steps of using reinforced concrete are mixing, casting, and
curing. All of this affect the final strength.
The cost of the forms used for casting is relatively higher.
For multi-storied building the RCC column section for is larger than steel
section as the compressive strength is lower in the case of RCC.
Shrinkage causes crack development and strength loss.

4. Properties of Concrete.
Properties of concrete are influenced by many factors mainly due to mix
proportion of cement, sand, aggregates and water. Ratio of these materials
control the various concrete properties.
Properties of Concrete are:
Grades (M20, M25, M30 etc.)- Concrete is known by its grade which is
designated as M15, M20 etc. in which letter M refers to concrete mix and
number 15, 20 denotes the specified compressive strength (fck) of
150mm cube at 28 days, expressed in N/mm2. Thus, concrete is known
by its compressive strength. M20 and M25 are the most common grades
of concrete, and higher grades of concrete should be used for severe,
very severe and extreme environments.
Compressive strength- Like load, the strength of the concrete is also a
quality which varies considerably for the same concrete mix. Therefore, a
single representative value, known as characteristic strength is used.
 Characteristic Strength- It is defined as the value of the strength below
which not more then 5% of the test results are expected to fall (i.e. there
is 95% probability of achieving this value only 5% of not achieving the
same). The characteristic strength of concrete in flexural member is
taken as 0.67 times the strength of concrete cube.
The strength to be taken for the purpose of design is known is known as
design strength and is given by
Design strength (fd) = characteristic strength/ partial safety factor for
material strength
The value of partial safety factor depends upon the type of material and
upon the type of limit state. According to IS code, partial safety factor is
taken as 1.5 for concrete and 1.15 for steel.
Design strength of concrete in member = 0.45fck
Tensile strength- The estimate of flexural tensile strength or the modulus
of rupture or the cracking strength of concrete from cube compressive
strength is obtained by the relations
fcr = 0.7 fck N/mm2
The tensile strength of concrete in direct tension is obtained
experimentally by split cylinder. It varies between 1/8 to 1/12 of cube
compressive strength.
Durability- Durability of concrete is its ability to resist its disintegration
and decay. One of the chief characteristics influencing durability of
concrete is its permeability to increase of water and other potentially
deleterious materials.
The desired low permeability in concrete is achieved by having adequate
cement, sufficient low water/cement ratio, by ensuring full compaction of
concrete and by adequate curing.
Creep- Creep is defined as the plastic deformation under sustain load.
Creep strain depends primarily on the duration of sustained loading.
According to the code, the value of the ultimate creep coefficient is taken
as 1.6 at 28 days of loading.
Shrinkage- The property of diminishing in volume during the process of
drying and hardening is termed Shrinkage. It depends mainly on the
duration of exposure. If this strain is prevented, it produces tensile stress
in the concrete and hence concrete develops cracks.
Unit weight- The unit weight of concrete depends on percentage of
reinforcement, type of aggregate, amount of voids and varies from 23 to
26KN/m2. The unit weight of plain and reinforced concrete as specified by
IS:456 are 24 and 25KN/m3respectively.
 Modular Ratio- Short term modular ratio is the modulus of elasticity of
steel to the modulus of elasticity of concrete.
Short term modular ratio = Es / Ec
Es = modulus of elasticity of steel (210 5 N/mm2)
Ec = modulus of elasticity of concrete (5000xSQRT(fck) N/mm2)
As the modulus of elasticity of concrete changes with time, age at loading
etc the modular ratio also changes accordingly. Taking into account the
effects of creep and shrinkage partially IS code gives the following
expression for the long term modular ratio.
Long term modular ratio (m) = 280/ (3fcbc)
Where, fcbc = permissible compressive stress due to bending in concrete
in N/mm2.
Poissons ratio- Poissons ratio varies between 0.1 for high strength
concrete and 0.2 for weak mixes. It is normally taken as 0.15 for strength
design and 0.2 for serviceability criteria.

5. Types of Aggregates in Reinforced Concrete.

a. Granite Aggregates
Granite aggregates are crushed hard rock of granular structure, being the
most common on Earth. Granite rock comes from magma that erupted on
the ground surface and then hardened. Good properties of granite make
it the most popular building material.
In terms of its technical characteristics granite is solid (grades 800-1200)
and highly solid (grades 1,400-1,600), frost resistant (grades 300-400),
with low flakiness index (5-23%), of the 1st class in terms of
radionuclidity (A (eff) <370nBq/kg). The radionuclide content, harmful
components and additives indicators are either absent or do not exceed
norms, the fact of which is proven by corresponding certificates and
conclusions issued after conducted researches.
It is the best aggregate for high-grade concrete. Granite is also used as a
decorative stone. It can be grey, red, or pink and has a lot of shades.
After polishing it acquires a beautiful smooth surface. Granite is mostly
composed of feldspar, quartz and mica crystals, the content of which
influences the color and shades of the stone.
Fractions of granite aggregate and their applications
 0-2 mm, 0-5mm (granite sand): the smallest granite aggregates
fractions are used, besides the road construction, for decoration and
paving paths, for covering sports grounds and children's playgrounds.
Such aggregates are used for making various reinforced concrete
structures. They are used for deicing (decrease the slip coefficient).
Granite sand is successfully used in landscape architecture (for
gardening).
2-5 mm: aggregates of this fraction are mainly used to produce paving
slab and other similar construction products where such fraction is
crucial.
3-10 mm: this small fraction, like the popular 5-10 fraction, is used for
road construction and production of concrete.
5-10 mm: this is the most popular aggregates fraction. Aggregates of
this fraction are used in production of concrete and concrete
structures, construction of roads, buildings and bridges as well as for
different types of fillings, drainages, etc. However, the main application
of aggregates of this fraction is road surfacing. When producing
concrete, its main strength factor is the fullness of aggregates. The
more aggregates are in the mixture, the stronger the concrete. The
quality of round or cubic aggregates creates the highest compaction,
while the presence of needle shapes leads to the creation of voids and
increases in binding component volumes and thus reduces the
concrete strength. For this reason small aggregates fractions, one of
which is the 5-10 fraction, are used in production of quality concretes.
5-20 mm: small fraction. Aggregates of this fraction are mainly used
in road concrete mixes. This size provides the most adhesion in the
mixture, which subsequently makes the most solid type of concrete
and also provides surface evenness of concrete blocks. This minimizes
the preparation of walls, floors and ceilings of buildings for the final
stage of treatment - putting up wallpaper, laying tiles, etc. This given
fraction is the most used, percentage wise, in all construction work.
10-20 mm: small fraction. This given aggregates fraction is in the
most demand in road construction. Aggregates of this fraction are used
for laying both asphalt and concrete roads. It is used as filler for
garretting -sub-base preparation for the road surface.
20-40 mm: a medium fraction. It is used for road construction as a
lower layer beneath the asphalt surface. Currently this fraction is the
most commonly used in Ukraine's construction industry. It is used both
for small private construction and for construction of large industrial
spaces. Aggregates of this fraction are used as sub-bases in
 construction of highways and railways and in production of concrete
and massive structures from reinforced concrete. It is used as filler for
parking areas and bases for foundations when building work areas for
the operation for heavy construction machinery and as filler for
increased strength concretes.
0-20 mm, 0-40 mm: a road subbase that is used for road building and
maintenance operations.
5-8 mm, 8-11 mm and 11-16 mm (Euro fractions): used for
production of high-quality concrete and conforming to European
standards.
5-250 mm: a large fraction of aggregates (processed after primary
crushing) that is used as a basis for road surface.
20-70 mm, 40-70 mm: a large fraction that is used in production of
concrete and solid concrete structures and in works with large volumes
of concrete. It is also used in road construction within residential areas
and in building of industrial spaces and premises.
70-120 mm, 120-150 mm, 150-300 mm (quarry stone): rarely used.
It is used for decorative purposes, usually reveting of catchment areas,
reservoirs, and basins.
b. Gravel Aggregates
Gravel aggregates are aggregates acquired as the result of sifting
quarried rock and by crushing natural stone rock. In strength, gravel
aggregates are inferior to granite aggregates, but they also have their
advantages: their radioactive background is usually very low and they are
cheaper than granite aggregates.
Gravel aggregates are used for foundations and concretes and in
products made of reinforced concrete and in road construction.
There are two types of gravel aggregates:
Scabbled stone- - regular natural or crushed,
Gravel - rounded pebbles usually of river or sea origin.
Fractions of gravel aggregates are as follows: 3-10 mm, 5-20 mm, 5-40
mm, 20-40 mm.
c. Limestone Aggregates
Limestone aggregates are a product of the crushing of sedimentary rock -
limestone, which is composed mainly of calcite (calcium carbonate -
3).
Limestone aggregates (sometimes called lime or dolomite aggregate) is
one of the main types of aggregates that besides the gravel and the
granite types is used in road construction and in production of reinforced
concrete objects.
d. Secondary Aggregates
Secondary aggregate comes from crushing construction waste - concrete,
bricks, and asphalt. This type of aggregate is made with the same
equipment as other types of aggregates.
The main benefit of secondary aggregate is its low cost: on average, it is
two times cheaper than the granite type. Power input for its production in
comparison to other types of aggregates can be up to 8 times lower. The
prime cost of concrete in which secondary aggregate is used as a large
filler is a quarter lower.
In terms of strength, frost resistance, and certain other characteristics
secondary aggregate is inferior to aggregates made of natural stones;
nonetheless it has wide application:
As a large-scale filler for concretes with strength 5 ... 20 MPa;
In road construction (filler for roads and ramps, use as a lower layer for
roads that do not have state importance);
In maintenance works (filler under asphalted areas and sidewalks);
For reinforcing the weak soils (trenches for utility network and bottoms
of construction pits).
e. Slag Aggregates
Slag aggregates are obtained by crushing of smelter slag or by special
treatment of fire-liquid slag melt (molten slag aggregates). Currently
there are many types of concretes that are developed and used in
construction that include metallurgical slags both as a binding
component and as fillers. The cost of products from slag concretes is 20-
30% lower than traditional ones.