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• DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF A CONCRETE BARGE .

BY L. L. LIVINGSTON.*

It is a well-known fact that one of the first uses of reinforced concrete

was in boat construction. However, the literature on the subject is very
limited, .and while a number of attempts have been made to build boats out
of concrete, the necessity fo.r using every available material for shipbuilding
purposes has never been so great as at the present time.
The first concre1te boat built by the Louis L. Brown Co. was a deck barge
112 ft. long, 22 ft. wide, 10 ft. deep and has 18 in. shear and 2 in. camber in
the deck. Fig. 1 shows a longitudinal and a cross section of the boat as
originally designed. Slight modifications in certain details, and in the
arrangement of the bulkheads were made during .construction. The boat is
divide'CI. into six compartments instead of the four shown by one longitudinal
and two transverse bulkheads, The bottom and deck beams are carried by
longitudinal reinforced-concrete trusses. The panel length of these trusses
was 7ft. center to center, and the depth equal to the depth of the boat. They
are spaced 5 ft. 4 in. apart across the width of the boat and are reinforced
to take care of any hogging or sagging strains due to the following conditions:
1. The central third of the boat loaded with the end thirds light.
2. The end thirds loaded and the center third light.
3. One-third the load on one end of the boat.
4. The ends of the boat supported on the crest of a wave equal in height
to lo its length.
5. The center of the boat supported on the crest of a wave equal in
height to -.j0 its length.
6. The boat light supported in the extreme ends with no buoyancy.
The bottom, sides and deck slabs are 2! in. thick supported by beams
3 ft. 6 in. center to center. Fig. 2 shows a plan of the deck with the location
of the hatches, bits, fittings, etc. The cabin, deck, bulkheads and fenders are
built of wood. The stress used in the design are:
Reinforcing steel-16,000 lbs. per sq. in.
Extreme fiber stress in concrete--800 lb. per sq. in.
Allowable shearing stress in plain concrete--50 lb. per sq. in.
Allowable shearing stress in beams reinforced with bent-up rods and
stirrups-125lb. per sq. in.
The boat was built for side launching. The building ways were spaced
14ft. center to center. The forms were built in panels and bolted together.
The bottom panels which were carried by the building ways were supported
at the ends by wedges, which permitted them to be removed before removing
the building ways.
* Louis L. Brown Co., New York City.
(433)
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436 LIVINGSToN oN CoNCRETE BARGEls.

As the cement gun was u,sed in concreting the sides and bottom only one
form was necessary. This was placed on the outside of the boat. The mate-
rials used were mixed dry in a batch mixer and conveyed to the guns, located so
asto·cover the entire boat. Some of the views show th'e outer forms.
. All materials were tested and favorably reported for use for concrete .
in sea water by the Pittsburgh Testing Laboratory.

FIG. 3.-CONCRETE BARGE UNDER CONSTRUCTION.

· FIG. 4.-CONCRETE MIXER AT WORK FOR CONCRETE BARGE.

The proportions used in the mix varied. In the bottom it was one part
by volume of cement, 1! parts by volume of sand and two parts by volume
of limestone screenings. In the sides the mix was one part by volume of
cement to H parts by volume of sand. In the interior beams, trusses and
deck it was one part by volume of cement, 2 parts by volume of sand and two
parts by volume of limestone screenings. The limestone screenings were
screened through a t-in. screen and were well graded in size. Giant portland
cement was used throughout in the construction of this boat.
 LIVINGSTON ON CONCRETE BARGES. 437

FIG, 5.-INTERIOR OF BARGE WITH MESH REINFORCEMENT IN PLACE.

FIG, 6.-REINFORCEMENT OF INSIDE FRAMING IN PLACE.

438 LIVINGSTON ON CoNCRETE BARGES.

FIG. 7.-SIDE FRAMES CONCHETED Wl'l'H CEMENT GUN.

FIG. 8.-CONCRETING THE END FRAMES.

 LIVINGSTON oN CoNCRETE BARGES. 439

The reinforcement used in all slabs and bulkheads was Clinton Electric
weld galvanized wire mesh No.3 and 8 wire spaced 2 x 16 in. One view shows
the wire mesh in the hull of the boat. All reinforcing rods used in the beams
were Havemeyer bars. This reinforceme11t together with the forms for the
bottom beams and the ribs in the side were supported from theltop by beams
spanning the width of the boat as shown by Fig. 5.
The concrete was applied in the outer hull in three operations. First, the
bottom slab and beams were concreted. Second, the side slab and beams for

FIG. 9.-DECK FORMS AND REINFORCEMENT IN PLACE.

FIG. 10.-THE COMPLETED 725-TON CONCRETE BARGE.

440 LIVINGSTON oN CoNCRETE BARGES.

approximately onechalf the height of the sides and the third operation com-
pleted the sides.
Fig. 7 shows the bottom and sides concreted. Fig. 8 shows the two
operato.rs concreting the end rake.
It was necessary to concrete the sides in two operations as it was found
in attempting to concrete a vertical slab of this thickness with the cement
gun for a greater height than about 5 ft. tha,t there was a decided tendency
.for the concrete to drag our pull down causing it to crack before it had set.
The remainder of the boat was poured in two operations. Fig. 9 shows
the deck forms before placing the slab reinforcement.
The bitts were made of 10-in. pipe with holes through the bottom and
sides for reinforcing rods, which spread out on the deck.
Three sets of 6 x 8-in. fenders were attached to the sides of the boat by
bolting through the side ribs. Holes were provided in the concrete for the
bolts by wooden pegs placed in the forms before concreting. After the
forms were removed the pegs were bored out of the concrete.
Marine glue made by the New-Pro Chemical Company was heated and
poured into the bolt holes and the bolt for attaching the fenders was ins!lrted
while the glue was hot; the glue filling any space between the bolt and the
concrete.
Fig. 10 shows the boat completed and ready for launching
It was intended to launch this boat in the fall of 1917, but upon removing
the outside and bottom forms, it was found that the product obtained by the
use of the cement gun was not sufficiently uniform to insure a water-tight hull.
It was necessary to go over the boat very thoroughly and remove the sand
pockets or defective concrete. and replace them with new concrete.
While the writer believes that it is possible to build a water-tight hull·
with the cement gun with less sand pockets than was encountered. in the
construction of this boat, he does not believe, even under the most favorable
conditions as to the design of the boat and in the OI?eration of the gun, that
sand pockets can be entirely eliminated. After all the defective concrete
was replaced, the hull was painted with a neat cement grout, which was
thoroughly rubbed into the pores of the concrete.
Four launchways were used in launching, spaced so as to divide the load
as equally as possible. The declivity of the ways was ! in. per ft., and the
pressure was approximately 2! tons per sq. ft. of way. The launching was
very successful, and the boat draws 3 ft. 8 in. of water when light, and shows
no leakage.
After having made a thorough study in the design and in the methods of
construction of concrete barges, the writer believes that there are no diffi~
culties that cannot be overcome, and that eventually reinforced concrete will
prove to be the desirable material for the construction of barges and other
floating craft, both from the point of view of first cost, and for serviceability.