Deflection – Introductory Concepts

When a beam is properly designed for permissible stresses, ultimate strength, shear and torsion it
is very likely that the design can be finalized. However, there are increasingly situations where it
is essential to check if the serviceability is satisfactory. The most frequently considered
serviceability limit states in prestressed concrete are related to short- and long-term camber or
deflection, fatigue, cracking, corrosion resistance and durability.

“Camber” typically refers to the deflection caused by the prestressing alone. It is generally
upwards at the midspan in simply supported beams.

“Deflection” is that produced by external loads, usually downwards at midspan.

At any time t, the total deflection can be separated into two parts, an instantaneous short-term
part and an additional time dependent part (due to creep, shrinkage, relaxation, change in
material properties etc). The figure below shows some of the key variables in deflection
calculations.
 The ACI serviceability requirements for uncracked (U), cracked (C), and transition (T)
presressed members are summarized in the table below.

For Class T and Class C members, the cracked section analysis may be done with either the
effective moment of inertia (Ie) approach or bilinear method.

Effective Moment of Inertia

Some regions of the beam may be uncracked where the use of the gross moment of inertia Ig
would be appropriate, but other regions are cracked where the moment of inertia may reduce to
the cracked moment of inertia Icr. One approach, as suggested by Branson, would be to take an
average value, using an effective moment of inertia Ie. The method is similar to the method used
in reinforced concrete but with some minor modifications.

3
M 
I e =I cr +  cr  ( I g − I cr ) ≤ I g
 Ma 

 M cr 
3
  M 3 
Or I e 
=  I g + 1 −    I cr ≤ I g
cr
M  M
 a    a  
Where Mcr is the portion of live load that causes cracking and Ma is the total unfactored live
load. The ratio Mcr/Ma can also be written in PCI format giving identical results

M cr  f − fr 
= 1 −  tl 
Ma  fL 

Where ftl = final total service load stress in extreme fiber

fr = modulus of rupture
fL = service load stress in extreme fiber due to live load only
PCI suggests the following equation to calculate the cracked moment of inertia.

( )(
I cr = n p Aps d p 2 + ns As d 2 1 − 1.6 n p ρ p + ns ρ )
Bilinear Method

In the bilinear method, the moment-deflection curve is idealized as bilinear, with the first portion
utilizing the gross moment of inertia and the second portion using Icr.
Long-term deflections and cambers can be evaluated by more elaborate (computationally
intensive) time-step evaluations or simpler multiplier-based approach (based on experience). For
example, the PCI multipliers are suggested in Table 7.1.

Some researchers propose that mild steel can help to significantly reduce long-term camber and
deflection and suggest using the multiplier

C1 + A s Aps
C2 =
1 + As / Aps