Reinforced Concrete Design 1: INTRODUCTION TO REINFORCED CONCRETE

Prepared by: ENGR BIR

CONCRETE – is a stone-like material obtained by permitting a carefully proportioned mixture of cement,

sand and gravel or aggregates and water to harden in forms of the shape and dimension of the desired
structure.

REINFORCED CONCRETE – is a combination of concrete and steel wherein the steel reinforcement
provides the tensile strength lacking in concrete.

ADVANTAGES OF REINFORCED CONCRETE

- It has a considerable compressive strength per unit cost with most other material.
- Reinforced concrete structures are very rigid.
- It is a low-maintenance material.
- As compared with other materials, it has a very long service life.
- A special feature of concrete is its ability to be cast into an extraordinary variety of shapes from
simple slabs, beams and columns to great arches and shells.
- In most areas, concrete takes advantage of inexpensive local materials (sand, gravel and water)
and requires relatively small amount of cement and reinforcing steel.
- A lower grade of skilled labor is required for erection compared with other materials such as
structural steel.
DISADVANTAGES OF CONCRETE
- Concrete has a very low tensile strength requiring the use of tensile reinforcing.
- Forms are required to hold concrete in place until it hardens sufficiently. Formwork is very
expensive.
- The low strength per unit weight of concrete leads to heavy members.
- Similarly, the low strength of concrete per unit volume of concrete means members will be
relatively large.
- The properties of concrete varies widely because of variations in its proportioning and mixing.

MATERIALS FOR CONCRETE

A. Cement
A cementitious materials is one that has the adhesive and cohesive properties necessary to bond inert
aggregates into solid mass of adequate strength and durability.
Heat of hydration – a chemical process involved in the setting and hardening liberates heat. Heat
generated due to hydration of cement, due to reaction between cement particles and water.
Type of Cement
 Type I – Normal: The common, all-purpose cement used for general construction work or for all
types of structures.
 Type IA – Normal, Air Entraining: Used in some structures as Type I where air entrainment is
desired.
 Type II – Moderate Sulfate Resistance: General purpose cement used in structures where
protection against moderate sulfate attack is important or where moderate heat of hydration is
desired.
Reinforced Concrete Design 1: INTRODUCTION TO REINFORCED CONCRETE
Prepared by: ENGR BIR

 Type IIA – Moderate Sulfate Resistance, Air Entraining: Used in same structures as type II where
air-entrainment is desired.
 Type III – High Early Strength: Used in structures where high early strength of the concrete is
desired or where structures must be put into service quickly.
 Type IIIA – High Early Strength, Air-Entraining: Used in same structures as type III where air-
entrainment is desired.
 Type IV – Low Heat of Hydration: A low-heat of cement that produces a concrete which generates
heat very slowly. It is used for massive concrete structures like dams.
 Type V – High Sulfate Resistance: Used in structures where high sulfate resistance is required such
as elements in direct contact with soils or ground water that have high sulfate content.
B. Aggregates
In structural concrete, the aggregates occupy 65 to 75 percent of the volume of the hardened
mass.
Classification of Aggregates
1. Fine Aggregates – typically natural sand, is any material that will pass a 4.75mm sieve (No.4 sieve).
2. Coarse Aggregates – usually gravel or crushed stone, which are coarser than fine aggregates.
Section 3.3.2 ACI Code/Section 403.4.2 NSCP 2010: Nominal Maximum Size of Aggregates:
The nominal maximum size of aggregates shall not be larger than:
1. One-fifth (1/5) the narrowest dimension between sides of forms
2. One-third (1/3) the depth of slabs; or
3. Three-fourths (3/4) the minimum clear spacing between individual reinforcing bars or wires,
bundles or prestressing tendons.
C. Admixtures
Are ingredients other than cement, aggregates, and water that are added to concrete mix
immediately before or during mixing. Reducing the cost of concrete construction, economically
achieving desired properties in concrete, and maintaining the quality of concrete during mixing,
transporting, placing, and curing are a few reasons why admixtures are used in concrete.
Types of Admixtures
1. Air-entraining Admixtures – These admixtures purposely introduce microscopic air bubbles in
concrete to improve its durability when exposed to repeated freeze-thaw cycles. They also
increase resistance to scaling due to exposure to deicing chemical and improve workability of
fresh concrete.
2. Accelerating Admixtures – Used to accelerate its early strength development. The results of such
additions are reduced times required for curing and protection of the concrete and the earlier
removal of forms.
3. Retarding Admixtures – Used to slow the setting of concrete and to retard temperature increases.
4. Superplasticizers – There used enables engineers to reduce the water content in concrete
substantially while at the same time increasing their slumps.
5. Waterproofing Membrane – Usually are applied to hardened concrete surfaces, but they may be
added to concrete mixes. They may help retard the penetration of water into porous concretes
but probably don’t help dense, well cured concrete very much.
Reinforced Concrete Design 1: INTRODUCTION TO REINFORCED CONCRETE
Prepared by: ENGR BIR

6. Corrosion Inhibitors – These are usually in parking structures, marine structures, and other
structures exposed to chlorides, which can cause corrosion of steel reinforcement in concrete.
D. Water
In general, water that is drinkable can usually be used for making concrete. NSCP C101-10 states
that water used in mixing concrete shall be clean and free from injurious amount of oils, acids,
alkalis, salts, organic materials or other substances deleterious to concrete or reinforcement.

TESTS
A. Concrete Testing
1. Test on Wet Concrete
o Slump Test - standard method in determining the relative consistency of concrete.
2. Test on Hardened Concrete
A.1 Compressive Strength – The most important property of concrete. The characteristic
strength is measured by the 28 days cylinder strength.
A.2 Tensile Strength – It is determined by loading a concrete cylinder across a diameter.
A.3 Test Cores – Cylindrical cores are cut form the finished structure with a rotary cutting tool.
The core is soaked, capped and tested in compression to give a measure of the concrete
strength in the actual structure. The ratio of core height to diameter and location where the
core is taken affect the strength. The strength is lowest at the top surface in increases with
depth through the element. A ratio of core height-to-diameter of 2 gives a standard cylinder
test.
3. Non-Destructive Test
A.1 Rebound Hardness Test – The Schmidt Hammer Test is used in the rebound hardness test
in which a metal hammer held against the concrete is struck by another spring-driven metal
mass and rebounds. The amount of rebar is recorded on a scale and this gives an indication
of the concrete strength. The larger the rebound number, the higher the concrete strength.

Figure 1. Rebound Hammer Test

A.2 Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity Test – In the ultrasonic pulse velocity of ultrasonic pulses that pass
through a concrete section from a transmitter to a receiver is measured. The pulse velocity is
correlated against strength. The higher the velocity is, the stronger is the concrete.
Properties of Concrete
Reinforced Concrete Design 1: INTRODUCTION TO REINFORCED CONCRETE
Prepared by: ENGR BIR

1. Compressive Strength – Denoted by F’c, is determined by testing to failure-28 day old 6in
(150mm) diameter by 12in (300mm) concrete cylinders at a specified rate of load. Most of the
concretes used in the industry fall into the 3000psi to 7000psi range. For ordinary application,
3000psi (20.7MPa) and 4000psi (27.6MPa) are used.
Proportioning Evaluation and Acceptance of Concrete
Strength level of an individual class of concrete shall be considered satisfactory if both of the following
requirements are met:
a. Every arithmetic average of any three consecutive strength tests equals or exceed F’c
b. No individual strength test (average of two cylinders) falls below F’c by more than 35MPa, when
F’c is 35MPa or less; or by more than 0.1F’c when F’c is more than 35MPa.
2. Modulus of Elasticity
o Static Modulus of Elasticity
 for concrete whose weight is between 1500kg/m3 to 2500kg/m3
𝐸𝐶 = 𝑤𝑐1.5 (0.043√𝐹′𝑐
 for normal weight concrete
𝐸𝐶 = 4700√𝐹′𝑐
o Dynamic Modulus of Elasticity – Corresponds to very small instantaneous strains, is
usually obtained by sonic tests. It is generally 20% to 40% higher than the static modulus
and is approximately equal to the initial modulus.
3. Poisson’s Ratio – This is the ratio of lateral expansion to the longitudinal shortening. Its values
varies from about 0.11 for the higher strength concrete to as high as 0.21 for the weaker grade
concrete with average values of 0.16.
4. Shrinkage – Occurs when the extra mixing water that was used begins to work its way out of the
concrete to the surface where it evaporates. To minimize shrinkage it is desirable to:
a. Keep the amount of mixing water to a minimum.
b. Cure the concrete well.
c. Place the concrete for walls, floors and the other large items in small sections (thus allowing
some of the shrinkage to take place before the next section is placed).
d. Use construction joints to control position of cracks.
e. Use shrinkage reinforcement and
f. Use appropriate dense and non-porous aggregates.
5. Creep – Under sustained loads, concrete will continue to deform for long period of time. The
additional deformation that occurs after the initial deformation is known as creep or plastic flow.
6. Tensile Strength – It varies from about 8% to 15% of its compressive strength.
7. Shear Strength – The tests of concrete shearing strength through the years have yielded values all
the way from one-third to four-fifths of the ultimate compressive strength.

Example 1.1 Acceptance of Concrete

The following table lists strength data for 5 truckloads (batches) of concrete delivered to the job site. For
each batch, two cylinders were cast and tested at 28 days. The specified strength of the concrete is
Reinforced Concrete Design 1: INTRODUCTION TO REINFORCED CONCRETE
Prepared by: ENGR BIR

27.6MPa. Determine the acceptability of the concrete based on the strength criteria of Sec. 405.7 of NSCP
C101-10.
Test No. Cylinder 1 (MPa) Cylinder 2 (MPa)
1 28.4 29.4
2 26.5 28.2
3 30.5 30.
4 25.3 26.4
5 31.9 31.5
Steel Reinforcement
Reinforcement maybe in the forms of bars or wielded wire fabric. The reinforcing bars are referred to as
a plain or deformed bar.