Particularities of the structural behaviour of reinforced high strength concrete slabs

The introduction of high strength concrete in construction demanded an assessment of the current methods of structural design. In the case of the slabs, the benefits brought about by concretes of higher strength could translate into design of slender sections. Theoretically these sections could be prone to excessive deflections. The flexural behaviour of such structural elements should be carefully assessed. The present thesis addresses a series of particular issues such as deflection at service loads, crack formation and development of tension stiffening and ductility.An experimental program on large-scale samples was conducted. Six one way and four two way slabs made of reinforced high strength concrete were tested under simulated and accurately measured equally distributed loads. Different loading stages were recorded. Crack formation, crack patterns and yield line disposition were observed. The main characteristics of concrete that influence the deflection behaviour were assessed based on collected data and on available literature results. Statistical methods were employed in order to refine empirical equations that help in the design of slabs. To improve the calculation of deflection of slabs a new equation for the effective moment of inertia was proposed. The new formula was integrated into a method of calculating deflection and verified against experimental results.Limits of the use of high strength concrete in slabs were investigated by means of a parametric study. This was designed to answer some questions as: which would be the most important characteristics of high-strength concrete that influence the design and up to what value of strength would the beneficial effect on deflection exhaust its effectiveness. Models based on the refined empirical equations for different concrete parameters were proposed.Another area that has been studied was the ductility of high strength concrete slabs. An analytical comparative study of the ductility of slabs reinforced with steel of different ductility class was conducted. Results were critically appraised and discussed