Reinforced Concrete Design 1

CE 217
 Concrete being weakest in tension, a concrete beam under an
assumed working load will definitely crack at the tension side, and
the beam will collapse if tensile reinforcement is not provided

Concrete cracks occur at a loading stage when its maximum tensile

stress reaches the modulus of rupture of concrete

Therefore, steel bars are used to increase the moment resisting

capacity of the beam; the steel bars resist the tensile force, and the
concrete resists the compressive force

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 To study the behaviour of a reinforced concrete beam under
increasing load, let us examine how two beams were tested to
failure. Details of the beams are shown in Fig. 3.1.

Both beams had a section of 4.5 in. by 8 in. (110 mm. by 200 mm),
reinforced only on the tension side by two no. 5 bars. They were
made of the same concrete mix. Beam 1 had no stirrups, whereas
beam 2 was provided with reinforcement no. 3, stirrups, spaced at 3
in

The loading system and testing procedure were the same for both
beams. To determine the compressive strength of the concrete and
its modulus of elasticity, Ec, a standard concrete cylinder was tested,
and strain was measured at different load increments

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure
Stage 1

At zero external load, each beam carried its own weight in addition to
that of the loading system, which consisted of an I-beam and some
plates.

Both beams behaved similarly at this stage

At any section, the entire concrete section, in addition to the steel

reinforcement, resisted the bending moment and shearing forces.

Maximum stress occurred at the section of maximum bending moment-

that is, at midspan. Maximum tension stress at the bottom fibers was
much less than the modulus of rupture of concrete.

Compressive stress at the top fibers was much less than the ultimate
concrete compressive stress, fc . No cracks were observed at this
stage.
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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 2.

This stage was reached when the external load, P, was increased
from 0 to P1 , which produced tensile stresses at the bottom fibers
equal to the modulus of rupture of concrete.

At this stage the entire concrete section was effective, with the steel
bars at the tension side sustaining a strain equal to that of the
surrounding concrete

Stress in the steel bars was equal to the stress in the adjacent
concrete multiplied by the modular ratio, n, the ratio of the modulus of
elasticity of steel to that of concrete. (n= Es / Ec - Strain same stress
not same)

The compressive stress of concrete at the top fibers was still very
small compared with the compressive strength, fc . The behavior of
beams was elastic within this stage of loading.

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 3

When the load was increased beyond P1, tensile stresses in concrete
at the tension zone increased until they were greater than the modulus
of rupture, and cracks developed.

The neutral axis shifted upward, and cracks extended close to the
level of the shifted neutral axis. Concrete in the tension zone lost its
tensile strength, and the steel bars started to work effectively and to
resist the entire tensile force

Between cracks, the concrete bottom fibers had tensile stresses, but
they were of negligible value. It can be assumed that concrete below
the neutral axis did not participate in resisting external moments

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 3 contd. Load increase beyond P1

In general, the development of cracks and the spacing and

maximum width of cracks depend on many factors, such as the level
of stress in the steel bars, distribution of steel bars in the section,
concrete cover, and grade of steel used.

At this stage, the deflection of the beams increased clearly, because

the moment of inertia of the cracked section was less than that of
the uncracked section.

Cracks started about the midspan of the beam, but other parts along
the length of the beam did not crack. When load was again
increased, new cracks developed, extending toward the supports.

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 3 contd.

The spacing of these cracks depends on the concrete cover and the
level of steel stress. The width of cracks also increased.

One or two of the central cracks were most affected by the load, and
their crack widths increased appreciably, whereas the other crack
widths increased much less.

At high compressive stresses, the strain of the concrete increased

rapidly, and the stress of concrete at any strain level was estimated
from a stress-strain graph obtained by testing a standard cylinder to
failure for the same concrete.

As for the steel, the stresses were still below the yield stress, and the
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stress at any level of strain was obtained by multiplying the strain of
 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 4

In beam 1, at a load value of 9500 Ib (42.75 kN), shear stress at a

distance of about the depth of the beam from the support increased
and caused diagonal cracks at approximately 450 from horizontal in the
direction of principal stresses resulting from the combined action of
bending moment and shearing force.

The diagonal crack extended downward to the level of the steel bars
and then extended horizontally at the level toward the support.

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 4 contd.

When the crack reached the end of the beam, a concrete piece broke
off and failure occurred suddenly (Fig. 3.2). In the beam 1 the failure
load was 13600 Ib (61.2 kN).

In the beam 2, at a load of 11000 Ib (49.5 kN), a diagonal crack

developed similar to that of beam 1; then other parallel diagonal cracks
appeared, and the stirrups started to take an effective part in resisting
the principal stresses. Cracks did not extend along the horizontal main
steel bars, as in beam 1. On increasing the load, diagonal cracks on
the other end of the beam developed at a load of 13250 Ib (59.6 kN).
Failure did not occur at this stage because of the presence of stirrups.

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

Stage 5

When the load on beam 2 was further increased, strains increased

rapidly until the maximum carrying capacity of the beam was reached
at ultimate load, Pu= 16200 Ib (72.9 kN).

The steel bars yielded, and the compressive strain on the concrete
increased, steel strain hardening occurred, and concrete reached its
maximum strain, and it started to crush under load; then the beam
collapsed. Figure 3.2.

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 Behavior of RC beam to Failure

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 Three types of flexural failure of a structural member
can be expected / designed depending on the
percentage of steel used in the section

1. Tension Controlled section (also called Under

Reinforced)

2. Balanced Section

3. Compression controlled (also called Over

Reinforced )
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 Tension Controlled Section

Steel may reach its yield strength before the concrete reaches its
maximum strength, Fig. 3.3 a.
In this case, the failure is due to the yielding of steel reaching a high
strain equal to or greater than 0.005.
The section contains a relatively small amount of steel and is called
a tension-controlled section.

Fig. 3.3 a.
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Tension controlled section
 Balanced Section

Steel may reach its yield strength at the same time as concrete
reaches its ultimate strength, Fig. 3.3 b.

Fig. 3.3 b.
Balanced section
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 Compression Controlled Section
Concrete may fail before the yield of steel, Fig. 3.3 c, due to the
presence of a high percentage of steel in the section. In this case,
the concrete strength and its maximum strain of 0.003 are reached,
but the steel stress is less than the yield strength, that is, fs is less
than fy .
The strain in the steel is equal to or less than 0.002.
This section is called a compression-controlled section.

Fig. 3.3 c.
Compression
controlled
39 section
 Choice of Type of Section

In beams designed as tension-controlled sections, steel

yields before the crushing of concrete. Cracks widen
extensively, giving warning before the concrete crushes
and the structure collapses. The ACI Code adopts this
type of design.

In beams designed as balanced or compression-

controlled sections, the concrete fails suddenly, and the
beam collapses immediately without warning. The ACI
Code does not allow this type of design.

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 The design provisions for both reinforced concrete
members are based on the concept of tension or
compression-controlled sections, ACI Code, Section
10.3.

Both are defined in terms of tensile strain (TS), (, in the

extreme tension steel at nominal strength)

Moreover, two other conditions may develop:

(1) the balanced strain condition and ,
(2) the transition region condition.

These four conditions are defined in the next few slides:

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Compression-controlled sections are those sections in
which the Tensile strain, TS, in the extreme tension steel at
nominal strength is equal to or less than the compression
controlled strain limit at the time when concrete in
compression reaches its assumed strain limit of 0.003, (
concrete = 0.003).

For grade 60 steel, (fy = 60 ksi), the compression-controlled

strain limit may be taken as a net strain of 0.002, Fig. 3.4a.

This case occurs mainly in columns subjected to axial

forces and moments.

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Tension-controlled sections are those sections in which the
TS, tensile , is equal to or greater than 0.005 just as the
concrete in the compression reaches its assumed strain
limit of 0.003, Fig. 3.4 c

Sections in which the TS in the extreme tension steel lies

between the compression controlled strain limit (0.002 for f
, = 60 ksi) and the tension-controlled strain limit of 0.005
constitute the transition region, Fig. 3.4b.

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 Strain levels

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 Strain levels

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 Balanced Section

The balanced strain condition develops in the section when the

tension steel, with the first yield, reaches a strain corresponding
to its yield strength, fy , or s = fy/Es just as the maximum strain in
concrete at the extreme compression fibers reaches 0.003, Fig. 3.5.

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