REINFORCING STEEL BARS AND TENDONS

Most people are familiar with reinforcing steel,

commonly called "rebar". It is used in bridges,
buildings, skyscrapers, homes, warehouses, and
foundations to increase the strength of a
concrete structure.
REBAR (Reinforcing bar)
collectively known as reinforcing steel and
reinforcement steel, is a steel bar or mesh of
steel wires used as a tension device in
reinforced concrete and reinforced masonry
structures to strengthen and hold the concrete in
tension. Rebar's surface is often patterned to
form a better bond with the concrete.[1]
 Rebar is the common name for cylindrical
shaped steel bars with uniformly spaced
protrusions called lugs or deformations. They
are hot rolled from semi-finished steel called
billets.
STEEL BILLETS
Reinforcing steel can be used in the form of
bars or rods that are either plain or deformed
or in the form of expanded metal wire, wire
fabric, or sheet metal. Each type is useful for
different purposes, and engineers design
structures with those purposes in mind.
 PLAIN BARS
Plain bars are round in cross section. They are
used in concrete for special purposes, such as
dowels at expansion joints, where bars must
slide in a metal or paper sleeve, for contraction
joints in roads and runways, and for column
spirals. They are the least used of the rod type
of reinforcement because they offer only
smooth, even surfaces for bonding with
concrete.
PLAIN BARS
DEFORMED BARS
Deformed bars differ from the plain bars in
that they have either indentations in them or
ridges on them, or both, in a regular pattern.
The twisted bar, for example, is made by
twisting a plain, square bar cold. The spiral
ridges, along the surface of the deformed
bar, increase its bond strength with concrete.
DEFORMED BARS
5 TYPES OF REBAR
Welded Wire Fabric - Welded wire fabric
consists of a sequence of steel wires arranged
at right angles and welded electrically at all steel
wires crossings.
Sheet-Metal Rebar - Sheet-metal reinforcement is
commonly used in floor slabs, stairs and roof
construction. Sheet-metal reinforcing is composed
of annealed sheet steel pieces bent into
corrugations about 1/16 inch depth, with holes
punched at regular spacing.
 Stainless Steel Rebar - Stainless steel can be used as
an alternative reinforcing steel bar with carbon steel
reinforcement. Using stainless steel reinforcing bars will
not create galvanic corrosion, and can be a cost-effective
solution in areas subject to corrosion problems, or where
repair is difficult and expensive. They will cost at least 8
times more than epoxy-coated rebar.
Expanded Metal or Wire Mesh - Expanded metal or wire mesh
reinforcement is another great reinforcement product for
concrete. Expanded metal is made by shearing a sheet of steel
into equal parallel lines and then expanded to create a diamond
or square shape between each cut.
Epoxy-Coated Rebar - Epoxy-coated rebar are costly
and are used in areas that will come into contact with
salt water or where the issue of corrosion is imminent.
The only downside is that the coating can sometimes be
fragile, so ensure to order those bars from a reputable
supplier.
TENDONS
A steel element such as a wire, cable, bar,
rod, or strand used to impart pre-stress
to concrete when the element is tensioned.
 PRE-STRESSED CONCRETE
Prestressed concrete is concrete where an internal stress has
been introduced to put the element into compression. Tensile
bending stresses due to self and applied loading are then offset
by the inbuilt compression.

The prestress is introduced by tensioning steel within the

concrete either before the concrete is cast (pre-tensioning) or
after casting in which case ducts are cast into the section and
steel tendons are then passed through the ducts, tensioned and
anchored putting the concrete into compression (post-tensioning).
In reinforced concrete, reinforcement in the form of steel bars or fabric
(or FRP bars or potentially specialist fibres) is placed in areas where tensile
stresses will occur under load. The reinforcement is strong in tension and is
able to absorb the stresses developing in the concrete so long as a good
bond between the concrete and steel is maintained. By limiting the stresses
that the steel has to deal with, the cracking in to concrete can be kept with-
in acceptable limits.

In pre-stressed concrete, the compressive stresses introduced into areas

where tensile stresses develop under load will resist or annul these tensile
stresses. So the concrete beam behaves as if it has a high tensile strength
of its own. Provided the tensile stresses do not exceed to pre-compression
stresses, cracking cannot occur in the bottom of the beam.
 PRE-TENSIONED CONCRETE
Compressive stresses are introduced in prestressed concrete
either by pre-tensioning or post-tensioning the steel
reinforcement.

Concrete, although strong in compression, is weak in tension.

For this reason it needs help in resisting the tensile stresses
caused by bending forces from applied loads which can result
in cracking and ultimately failure. In service bending stresses
(tensile) can therefore be counteracted by prestressing.
In pre-tensioning the reinforcement, in the form of tendons
or cables, is stretched (put into tension) across the concrete
formwork before the concrete is placed. After the concrete
has hardened and a suitable strength developed, the
tendons are released. The tendons attempt to shorten and
transfer the energy stored to the concrete through the bond
between the concrete and the reinforcement. A
compressive force is therefore induced into the concrete.
 POST-TENSIONED CONCRETE
Compressive stresses are introduced in prestressed concrete either by pre-
tensioning or post-tensioning the steel reinforcement. Concrete, although
strong in compression, is weak in tension. For this reason it needs help in
resisting tensile stresses caused by bending forces from applied loads which
can result in cracking and ultimately failure. In service bending stresses
(tensile) can be counteracted by prestressing.

For post-tensioning the reinforcement is not normally in the form of a metal

bar and a tendon or cable is normally used. In post-tensioning the concrete is
cast around tubes or ducts which will contain the reinforcing tendon. Once a
suitable concrete strength has developed, the tendons are threaded through
the ducts and stretched (put into tension).
This is achieved by anchoring the tendons against one end of the
concrete element and using hydraulic jacks to pull the tendon from the
other end. The second end is then anchored and the jacks released.
The tendons attempt to shorten transferring the stored energy to the
concrete as a compressive force through the end anchors thus putting
the concrete in compression.

The ducts are normally then filled with a cement grout to protect the
steel from corrosion and to aid the transfer of the pre-stressing forces
into the concrete. Post-tensioning can also be applied by using external
bars suitably connected to the concrete section to allow the transfer of
compression force. This system of external post-tensioning allows
access to the reinforcing steel for inspection and monitoring.
STEEL IS THE PRODUCT OF CHOICE FOR
REINFORCING CONCRETE DUE TO A
COMBINATION OF UNIQUE FACTORS:
Elastic properties The modulus of all steel reinforcement
is 29,000,000 psi and this value may be used in design. This
uniform modulus for all grades and bar sizes simplifies the
design process. Materials with lower moduli may require
additional bars to provide the same serviceability and
structures designed with these materials may experience
increased deflections and additional cracking. Steel has
similar elastic properties under both tensile and compression
loads.
Elongation under load Steel reinforcement has significant
elongation under load providing for well-defined cracks in the
structure during overload conditions. Such cracking provides
suitable warning for occupants regarding the loading of a
structure. Materials that do not exhibit non-elastic behaviour
under load may not provide sufficient ductility to warn of
impending failure.
Fatigue The fatigue properties of steel reinforced concrete
structures are well understood.
Bond development The development strength of
reinforcing steel in both straight and bent conditions is well
researched and understood.
Uniform properties in 3D Steel reinforcement generally has
uniform properties in all directions and the shear strength is
similar to the longitudinal yield strength.
Thermal properties The modulus of thermal expansion of
steel reinforcement is very similar to that of concrete. Due to the
similarity of concrete and steel thermal properties additional
stresses or deflections are not introduced upon heating the
concrete structure.
Joining Steel reinforcement can be joined using welding or
couplers that have strengths similar to that of the reinforcing
steel.
 Ability to be recycled Reinforcing steel is able to be
readily recycled at the end of the structure design life.
Fatigue The fatigue properties of steel reinforced
concrete structures are well understood.
Strength retention Under heating from fire, steel is able
to withstand high temperatures before strength and
ductility properties change. Many concrete structures that
have been subjected to fire can be rehabilitated using the
existing reinforcing steel.
 Ability to be bent Reinforcing steel can be bent after
being manufactured. This simplifies the construction and
provides for rapid delivery of fabricated materials.
Robustness Reinforcing steel is robust and able to
withstand rigors of construction.
Compatibility with concrete Reinforcing steel does not
need to be tied directly to the formwork and does not float
in concrete.
Availability Reinforcing steel is available in every region
of the country. Due to the number and distribution of
plants, LEED and other sustainability credits are available.
Yield At loads less than yield, steel exhibits elastic
properties that enable a structure to rebound upon
reloading. Steel reinforcement is available with yield
strengths from 40 to 100 ksi. The yield strength of steel is
not dependent on the bar diameter and substitution of
different combinations of bars with the same bar area may
be readily provided. This provides flexibility in the methods
of obtaining the same properties in a concrete structure.
Recycled content The recycled content of reinforcing
steel is greater than 75 percent and in most circumstances
greater than 95 percent.
Strength retention Under heating from fire, steel is
able to withstand high temperatures before strength and
ductility properties change. Many concrete structures that
have been subjected to fire can be rehabilitated using the
existing reinforcing steel.
Code Acceptance Steel reinforcement is accepted by
all concrete design codes worldwide.