What is a Reinforced Concrete?

Reinforced concrete (RC) (also called reinforced cement concrete or

RCC) is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile
strength and ductility are counteract by the addition of reinforcement
having higher tensile strength or ductility.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Pre stressed concrete is a method for
overcoming concrete's natural
weakness ?

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 EARLIEST EXAMPLES
The concept of pre stressing was invented years ago when metal brands

were wound around wooden pieces to form barrels.

The metal brands were tighten under tensile stress which creates

compression between the staves allowing them to resist internal liquid

pressure.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Pre stressed concrete is a method for overcoming concrete's natural
weakness in tension.

In 1904, Freyssinet attempted to introduce permanent acting forces in

Concrete to resist elastic forces under loads and was named “Pre
Stressing”.

It can be used to produce beams, floors or bridges with a longer span

than is practical with ordinary reinforced concrete.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 PRE-STRESSED CONCRETE

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Un-stressed beam

Load Deflection (downward)

Tendon Stressed

Pre-stress forces

Pre-stressed Deflection (upward)

Total Deflection (Flat)

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 What is Pre stressed Concrete?

Internal stresses of a suitable magnitude and distribution are introduced in

steel wires or tendons so that the stresses resulting from external loads are
counteracted to a desired degree.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 •Pre-stressing is a method in which compression force is
applied to the reinforced concrete section.

•Pre-stressing tendons (generally of high tensile steel cable or

rods) are used to provide a clamping load which produces a
compressive stress that balances the tensile stress that the
concrete compression member would otherwise
experience due to a bending load.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
Reinforced concrete:
Concrete is strong in compression weak in tension.
Steel is strong in tension
Reinforced concrete uses concrete to resist compression and to hold bars in position and uses steel to
resist tension.
Tensile strength of concrete is neglected (i.e. zero ) R.C beams allows crack under service load.

Concept of pre-stressing : The concept of pre stressing was invented years ago when metal brands were
wound around wooden pieces to form barrels. The metal brands were tighten under tensile stress which
creates compression between the staves allowing them to resist internal liquid pressure.

What is Pre-stressed Concrete

Internal stresses are induced to counteract external stresses .
To introduce permanent acting forces in concrete to resist elastic forces under loads and was named “
Pre stressing”.

Pre-stressed Concrete: Methods There are two basic methods of applying pre-stress to a concrete
member Pre-tensioning – most often used in factory situations Post-tensioning – site use
Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Concrete
Introduction:
concrete itself is a composite material . The basic ingredients of the concrete mix
are water , portland cement and aggregates(rock and sand).
Steel:
The terms commonly used in pre stressed concrete are explained. The terms are
placed in groups as per usage.
Forms of Pre stressing Steel
Wires
Pre stressing wire is a single unit made of steel.

Strands
Two, three or seven wires are wound to form
a pre stressing strand.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Tendon
A group of strands or wires are wound to
form a prestressing tendon.

Cable
A group of tendons form a prestressing cable.

Bars
A tendon can be made up of a single steel bar. The diameter of a bar is much
larger than that of a wire.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Applications of pre-stressed concrete:
Bridges
Slabs and beams in buildings for column free spaces
Water Tank
Concrete Piles
Thin Shell Structures
Repair and Rehabilitations

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
Pre-stressed Concrete is an architectural and structural material possessing great strength.
The unique characteristics of pre-stressed concrete allow predetermined, engineering
stresses to be placed in members to counteract stresses that occur when the unit is
subjected to service loads.

This is accomplished by combining the best properties of two quality materials:

- High strength concrete for compression
- High tensile strength steel strands for tension.

Pre-stressing is quite simple.

High tensile strands are stretched between abutments at each end of long casting beds.
Concrete is then poured into the forms encasing the strands.
As the concrete sets, it bonds to the tensioned steel.
When the concrete reaches a specific strength, the strands are released from the
abutments.
This compresses the concrete, arches the member, and creates a built in resistance to
service loads.
Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
PRINCIPLE
Using high tensile strength steel alloys producing permanent pre-compression in areas subjected to
Tension.
A portion of tensile stress is counteracted thereby reducing the cross-sectional area of the steel
reinforcement .
METHODS
a) Pre-tensioning
b) Post-tensioning
PRE-TENSIONING
Placing of concrete around reinforcing
tendons that have been stressed to
the desired degree.
POST-TENSIONING
Reinforcing tendons are stretched by
jacks whilst keeping them inserted in
voids left pre-hand during curing of
concrete.
These spaces are then pumped full of
grout to bond steel tightly to the
concrete.
Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V
STEEL BARS BEING STRETCHED BY JACKS Faculty of Architecture, SCET
PRE-TENSIONING
In Pre-tension, the tendons are tensioned against
some abutments before the concrete is place.
After the concrete is hardened, the tension force is
released.
The tendon tries to shrink back to the initial length
but the concrete resists it through the bond
between them, thus, compression force is induced in
concrete.
Pretension is usually done with precast members

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
POST – TENSIONING
Post-tensioning- is a method of reinforcing
(strengthening) concrete or other materials with high-
strength steel strands called tendons.
Post-tensioning allows construction that would
otherwise be impossible due to either site constraints or
architectural requirements.
Requires specialized knowledge and expertise to
fabricate, assemble and install.
After adequate curing of concrete, reinforcing tendons
(placed in side the voids of the structure) are
tensioned/stretched by jacks on the sides & grouts filled
with appropriate mix.
Applications –
a) Structural members beams, bridge-deck panels, Roof
–Slabs, Concrete Silos Etc.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
BENEFITS OF POST –TENSIONING METHOD
Concrete is very strong in compression but
weak in tension.
This deflection will cause the bottom of the
beam to elongate slightly & cause cracking.
Steel reinforcing bars (“rebar”) are typically
embedded in the concrete as tensile
reinforcement to limit the crack widths.
Rebar is what is called “passive” reinforcement
however; it does not carry any force until the
concrete has already deflected enough to crack.
Post-tensioning tendons, on the other hand, are
considered “active” reinforcing.
Because it is prestressed, the steel is effective
as reinforcement even though the concrete
may not be cracked .
Post-tensioned structures can be designed to
have minimal deflection and cracking, even
under full load.

Building Material & Construction Technology – V

B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
Comparative Study: Pre-tension Vs Post-tensioned Member
PRE-TENSION MEMBER POST-TENSIONED MEMBER
1. In pre-tensioned pre-stress concrete, steel is Concreting is done first then wires are
tensioned prior to that of concrete. It is tensioned and anchored at ends. The stress
released once the concrete is placed and transfer is by end bearing not by bond.
hardened. The stresses are transferred all
along the wire by means of bond.
2. Suitable for short span and precast products Suitable for long span bridges
like sleepers, electric poles on mass
production.
3. In pre-tensioning the cables are basically The post tensioning cables can be aligned in
straight and horizontal. Placing them in curved any manner to suit the B.M.D due to external
or inclined position is difficult. However the load system. Therefore it is more economical
wire’s can be kept with eccentrically. Since particularly for long span bridges. The curved
cables can not be aligned similar to B.M.D. or inclined cables can have vertical component
structural advantages are less compare to that at ends. These components will reduce the
of post-tensioned. design shear force. Hence post-tensioned
beams are superior to pre-tensioned beams
both from flexural and shear resistances point.
4. Pre-stress losses are more compare to that of Losses are less compare to pre-tensioned
post-tensioned concrete. concrete
Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET
 Building Material & Construction Technology – V
B. Arch. –III, Sem. - V Faculty of Architecture, SCET