Reinforced Cement Concrete Slab

A Reinforced Concrete Slab is the one of the most important component in a

building. It is a structural element of modern buildings. Slabs are supported

on Columns and Beams.
RCC Slabs whose thickness ranges from 10 to 50 centimetres are most often

used for the construction of floors and ceilings.

Thin concrete slabs are also used for exterior paving purpose.

RCC Slab Construction

In many domestic and industrial buildings a thick concrete slab, supported on

foundations or directly on the sub soil, is used to construct the ground floor of a
building.
In high rises buildings and skyscrapers, thinner, pre-cast concrete slabs are slung

between the steel frames to form the floors and ceilings on each level.
While making structural drawings of the reinforced concrete slab, the slabs are
abbreviated to r.c.slab or simply r.c..

Design of various types of slabs and their reinforcement

For a suspended slab, there are a number of designs to improve the strength-to-weight
ratio. In all cases the top surface remains flat, and the underside is modulated:

Corrugated, usually where the concrete is poured into a corrugated steel tray.

This improves strength and prevents the slab bending under its own weight. The
corrugations run across the short dimension, from side to side.
A ribbed slab, giving considerable extra strength on one direction.
A waffle slab, giving added strength in both directions.

Reinforcement design

A one way slab has structural strength in shortest direction.

A two way slab has structural strength in two directions.

These slabs could be cantilevered or Simply Supported Slabs.

Construction

A concrete slab can be cast in two ways: It could either be prefabricated or cast in

situ.
Prefabricated concrete slabs are cast in a factory and then transported to the

site ready to be lowered into place between steel or concrete beams.

They may be pre-stressed (in the factory), post-stressed (on site), or unstressed.

Care should be taken to see that the supporting structure is built to the correct
dimensions to avoid trouble with the fitting of slabs over the supporting structure.
In situ concrete slabs are built on the building site using formwork. Formwork is

a box-like setup in which concrete is poured for the construction of slabs.

For reinforced concrete slabs, reinforcing steel bars are placed within the

formwork and then the concrete is poured.

Plastic tipped metal, or plastic bar chairs are used to hold the reinforcing steel

bars away from the bottom and sides of the form-work, so that when the concrete
sets it completely envelops the reinforcement.
Formwork differs with the kind of slab. For a ground slab, the form-work may
consist only of sidewalls pushed into the ground whereas for a suspended slab,
the form-work is shaped like a tray, often supported by a temporary scaffold until the
concrete sets.

Materials used for the formwork

The formwork is commonly built from wooden planks and boards, plastic, or steel.

On commercial building sites today, plastic and steel are more common as they
save labour.
On low-budget sites, for instance when laying a concrete garden path, wooden

planks are very common. After the concrete has set the wood may be removed, or
left there permanently.
In some cases formwork is not necessary for instance, a ground slab
surrounded by brick or block foundation walls, where the walls act as the sides of
the tray and hardcore acts as the base.

Span Effective Depth ratios

Excessive deflections of slabs will cause damage to the ceiling, floor finishes and

other architectural details. To avoid this, limits are set on the span-depth ratios.
These limits are exactly the same as those for beams. As a slab is usually a
slender member the restriction on the span-depth ratio becomes more important
and this can often control the depth of slab required in terms of the span effective
depth ratio is given by,

Minimum effective depth = span/(basic ratio x modification factor)

The modification factor is based on the area of tension steel in the shorter span when a
slab is singly reinforced at midspan, the modification factors for the areas of tensions
and compression steel are as given in the figure 2 and 4 of the code.

Solid Slab spanning in two directions

When a slab is supported on all four of its sides, it effectively spans in both

directions, and it is sometimes more economical to design the slab on this basis.
The moment of bending in each direction will depend on the ratio of the two spans
and the conditions of restraint at each support.
If the slab is square and the restraint is similar along the four sides, then the load

will span equally in both directions. If the slab is rectangular, then more than onehalf of the load will be carried in the shorter direction and lesser load will be
imposed on the longer direction.
If one span is much longer than the other, a large portion of the load will be

carried in the shorter direction and the slab may as well be designed as spanning in
only one direction.
Moments in each direction of span are generally calculated using co-efficients

which are tabulated in the code.

The slab is reinforced with the bars in both directions parallel to the spans with

the steel for the shorter span placed farthest from the natural acis to five the greater
effective depth.
The span-effective depths are based on the shorter span and the percentage of
the reinforcement in that direction.

ADVANTAGES OF PRECAST CONCRETE

Following are the advantages of precast concrete:
1.

The concrete of superior quality is produced as it is possible to have better technical

control on the production of concrete in factory.

2.

It is not necessary to provide joints in the precast construction.

3.

The labour required in the manufacturing process of the precast units can easily be
trained.

4.

The moulds employed for preparing the precast units are of steel with exact dimension
in all directions. These moulds are more durable and they can be used several times.

5.

The precast articles may be given the desired shape and finish with accuracy.

6.

The precast structures can be dismantled, when required and they can then be suitably
used elsewhere.

7.

The transport and storage of various components of concrete for cast in situ work are
eliminated when precast members are adopted.

8.

The work can be completed in a short time, when precast units are adopted.

9.

When precast structures are to be installed, it is evident that the amount of scaffolding
and formwork is considerably reduced.

Precast Concrete

DISADVANTAGES OF PRECAST CONCRETE

Following are the disadvantages of precast concrete:
1.

If not properly handled, the precast units may be damaged during transport.

2.

It becomes difficult to produce satisfactory connections between the precast members.

3.

It is necessary to arrange for special equipment for lifting and moving of the precast
units.

4.

The economy achieved in precast construction is partially balanced by the amount to be

spent in transport and handling of precast members. It becomes therefore necessary to
locate the precast factory at such a place that transport and handling charges are brought
down to the minimum possible extent.

ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF

PRECAST CONCRETE CONSTRUCTION
Advantages and Disadvantages of Precast Concrete Construction

Advantages:

Very rapid speed of erection

Good quality control

Entire building can be precast-walls, floors,beams,etc.

Rapid construction on site

High quality because of the controlled conditions in the factory

Prestressing is easily done which can reduce the size and number of the structural members.

Disadvantages:

Very heavy members

Camber in beams and slabs

Very small margin for error

Connections may be difficult

Somewhat limited building design flexibility

Because panel size is limited, precast concrete can not be used for two-way structural
systems.

Economics of scale demand regularly shaped buildings.

Need for repetition of forms will affect building design.

Joints between panels are often expensive and complicated.

Skilled workmanship is required in the application of the panel on site.

Cranes are required to lift panels.

Ribbed (Waffle) Slab System

Waffle Slab Construction

Ribbed floors consisting of equally spaced ribs are usually supported directly by columns.They
are either one-way spanning systems known as ribbed slab or a two-way ribbed system known
as a waffle slab. This form of construction is not very common because of the formwork costs
and the low fire rating. A 120-mm-thick slab with a minimum rib thickness of 125 mm for
continuous ribs is required to achieve a 2-hour fire rating. A rib thickness of greater than 125 mm
is usually required to accommodate tensile and shear reinforcement. Ribbed slabs are suitable
for medium to heavy loads, can span reasonable distances, are very stiff and particularly suitable
where the soffit is exposed.
Slab depths typically vary from 75 to 125 mm and rib widths from 125 to 200 mm. Rib spacing of
600 to 1500 mm can be used. The overall depth of the floor typically varies from 300 to 600 mm
with overall spans of up to 15 m if reinforced, longer if post-tensioned. The use of ribs to the soffit
of the slab reduces the quantity of concrete and reinforcement and also the weight of the floor.
The saving of materials will be offset by the complication in formwork and placing of
reinforcement. However, formwork complication is minimised by use of standard, modular,
reusable formwork, usually made from polypropylene or fibreglass and with tapered sides to
allow stripping.
For ribs at 1200-mm centres (to suit standard forms) the economical reinforced concrete floor
span L is approximately D x 15 for a single span and D x 22 for a multi-span, where D is the
overall floor depth. The one-way ribs are typically designed as T-beams, often spanning in the
long direction. A solid drop panel is required at the columns and loadbearing walls for shear and
moment resistance.

Ribbed slab Construction

Advantages:

Savings on weight and materials

Long spans

Attractive soffit appearance if exposed

Economical when reusable formwork pans used

Vertical penetrations between ribs are easy.

Disadvantages:

Depth of slab between the ribs may control the fire rating

Requires special or proprietary formwork

Greater floor-to-floor height

Large vertical penetrations are more difficult to handle.

R.C.C. Floors:

Flat slab: An important development in RCC floor is that of a flat slab RCC floor.
In this method slab is built monolithically, with supporting columns only without
provision for beams. The flat slab may either be with drop or without drop. The
term drop is used to indicate that part of slab around the column having greater
thickness than the rest of the slab. See the sketch above to give various
nomenclature of flat slab.
The reinforcement in the flat slab can be arranged either in two way system or
four way system. For ordinary loading conditions, the two-way system of
reinforcement is generally adopted. The flat slab construction grants the
following advantages.
i). as the slab is constructed without any beam, a flat ceiling is obtained which
gives attractive appearance and greater height without obstructions for
services.
ii). It is considered less vulnerable in case of fire as compared to the ordinary
slab-beam construction.
iii). The concrete is more logically used in this type of construction and hence it
proves to be economical for large spans with heavy live loads.
iv). The formwork is simple and economical.
v). The plain ceiling grants better diffusion of light.

Hollow block and rib floors: In this type of floors, the hollow blocks of clay or
concrete are used to reduce the total weight of the floor.
In one form, the blocks are placed 100 mm apart and in this space, the mild steel
bars are placed as shown in sketch. A minimum cover of 80 mm is kept at the
top . suitable flooring at top and ceiling finish are provided. The blocks are
provided with rough or grooved surface so that they can develop enough bond
with concrete. This type of floor is economical, fire-proof, sound-proof and light in
weight. If properly designed, this type of floor can even be used to carry heavy
loads. The plumbing and electrical installations can be conveniently carried
through the hollow blocks without affecting the appearance. As hollow blocks
replace a portion of solid concrete, the dead weight is reduced and thereby the
economy is achieved. These floors are widely used for buildings like hospitals,
hotels, schools, offices, etc. the structural hollow clay floor tiles should be free
from cracks and they should be of uniform color and texture. It is desirable to
keep projections on one of the extreme face of such tiles so as to facilitate the
application of plaster. The weight per meter length of structural hollow clay floor
tiles does not exceed 140 N. The length, width and height of structural tiles are
from 450 mm or 900 mm, 190 mm or 240mm and 70 mm or 90 mm respectively.

Pre-cast concrete floors: With the development of pre-cast concrete construction

technique, it is possible to prepare the pre-cast units for the floor. These pre-cast
units are available in suitable sizes as can be conveniently handled, transported
and fixed. They may be supported either on walls or on rolled steel joists. The
sides of each unit contain grooves which are used to connect the adjacent units.

Advantages of pre-cast concrete floors: Following are the advantages of the precast concrete floors:
i). The construction work can be carried out speedily as there is absence of
operations like watering, curing, etc.
ii). The members are light in weight and hence the foundation cost proves to be
economical.
iii). They are fire proof and sound proof.
iv). They do not require formwork during construction.
v). They have good thermal insulation.
Disadvantages of pre-cast concrete floors: Following are the disadvantages of the
pre-cast concrete floors:
i). There are chances for breakages to occur during their transport from factory
to the site of work.
ii). They prove to be economical and cheap only when manufactured on a large
scale.
iii). They require careful supervision and skilled labor during their manufacturing
process.
iv). They require fairly uniform spacing of beams and columns throughout the
structure which becomes practically difficult.
v). They should be properly designed to resist the stresses developed during
transport and handling operations.