CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

1.1

Design of Reinforced Concrete Structure

Eurocode 0 Basis of Structural Design states:

A structure is an organised combination of connected parts
designed to carry loads and provide adequate rigidity.
Design is a process of selecting the material and determining the
size of the members of a structure to be built. The primary aim of
design is to achieve a safe structure that is functional and can be
built and maintain with the minimum cost.
Reinforced concrete is a concrete that is strengthen using steel
bars/reinforcement.

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Concrete is a composite material consists of cement, aggregate,

sand and water.

Concrete is a material strong in compression but weak in tension.

It has high resistance to heat and durable if expose to the
environment. Steel bar is strong in tension. It is also strong in
compression but it is rather weak in lateral stability during
compression and lost most of it strength during fire. Steel can
easily corrode if it is not protected from the environment. The
complementary properties of these two materials give a material
that is strong in various aspects.

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1.2

Design Process

A project begins when the client whether an individual,

government or company intent to built a building, than an architect
is consulted ( if the structure is bridges, airport, water storage tanks
or similar structure, than engineers will be consulted) to foresee the
owner intention such as shape, function and the estimated cost of
the building.
An architect or engineer (depends on the project) will try to
understand the client needs and try to collect as much information
as possible from the client point of view. After deciding on several
alternative systems, they will propose a suitable design (based on
the material and method of construction) which is presented in the
form of architecture drawings. Based on these drawings, engineer
will decide and prepare the structural drawing showing the
skeleton of the structure and the position of the main elements of
the structure such as beam, column, footings and others. Then the
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analysis of the structure is carried out such as calculating the loads

and determining the forces acting on each structural element. The
size of the element, its position and the amount of reinforcement is
calculated and is shown in the structure detailing drawing.
The project implementation procedures and the process of
designing a structure is as shown below:
Project Manager
(Architect,Engineer or
Others)

Architect

Engineering Consultant

Electrical and Mechanical

Engineer (M & E)

Quantity Surveyor

Building Contractor
(Quantity Surveyor,
Project Engineer, Site
Supervisor, Workers

Project Procedure

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Civil Engineer and

Structural Engineer (C &
S)

Design Process
Structural engineering is the study of how the various components of a
building or other structure act together to transmit forces down to the
foundations. Stages in the process are:
Structural planning stage : When a structural scheme is devised to
suit both the purpose of the building and the site conditions.
Structural analysis stage : When the loads on the structure are
determined and the way that the loads disperse through the structure
is analysed using the principles of structural mechanics.
Structural element design stage : When the size and properties of
each member are determined.
Structural detailing stage : When detail drawings are produced to
illustrate how the structure is to be constructed on site.
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Structural specification stage : When specification clauses are

compiled to define the standard of materials and workmanship to be
used.
Construction stage : When the structure is built, with appropriate
supervision, inspection and testing to ensure that it complies with the
drawings and the specification.

1.3

Reinforced Concrete Structure

Reinforced concrete is being used as one of the principal material

used in structures. Overall economy of reinforced concrete with the
advantages of corrosion and fire resistance make it suitable for
most structures such as:
Structural Frames
Retaining Walls
Water Retaining structures.
Highways
Bridges
Example of reinforced concrete structural system are as shown
below:
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1.3

Reinforced Concrete Elements

Generally a reinforced concrete building consists of several

elements such as beam, slab, column, wall, stair and foundation as
shown below:

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1.4

The Aim of Design

1. To achieve an acceptable probability that the structure will

perform satisfactorily during its intended life.
2. With an appropriate degree of safety, the structure should
sustain all loads and deformations of normal construction and
use, have adequate durability, and resistance to effects of
misuse and fire.
3. Calculations alone do not produce safe, serviceable and
durable structures. Equally important are the suitability of
materials, quality control and supervision of workmanship
during construction.
4. To produce a structure which is economical to construct,
maintain and service throughout its design life.

1.5

Code of Practice

During the design stage, an engineer always refers to the code of

practice for guidance. Code of practice is a document that
specified the best practices accumulated from experience engineers
and researchers. Malaysia generally has been using British Code of
Practice BS 8110 in the design of reinforced concrete structure.
However, by 2010 United Kingdom has withdrawn BS8110 and
adopts EC2. Since Malaysia has been using British Standards since
its introduction in 1985, the withdrawal of British Standard means
no further maintenance of British Standard in future. Standard
Malaysia and SIRIM Bhd therefore has made a stand to adopt
Eurocode 2 to be used by engineers in designing reinforced
concrete structure in Malaysia.

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British Standard
BS 8110:1997: Structural Use of Concrete
Part 1: Code of Practice for Design and Construction
Part 2: Code of Practice for Special Circumstances
Part 3: Design Charts for Singly Reinforced Beams, Doubly
Reinforced beams and Rectangular Column.
BS 6399: 1984: Design Loading for Building
Pt. 1: Code of Practice for Dead and Imposed
Loads
CP 3:1972: Chapter V: Loading
Part 2: Winds Load
Eurocode
Guidelines for the use of structural materials are found in
many published codes, and this manual is mostly based on a
set of codes produced for use throughout the European
Union the Eurocodes. Each country in the European Union
defines how each code is to be used by publishing a
National Annex for each code, and this manual is based on
the UK National Annexes.(National Annexes are unique
features based on each country determined parameters and
non-contradictory complementary information. Malaysia for
instance has annex on small beams and columns for
domestic construction, creep and shrinkage of concrete,
durability aspects and band beams constructions)
In relation to structural design, the codes and standards are
in two groups:
(a) Those relating to materials and components
(b) Those relating to loading and to the design of structures.
Tables 1.1 and 1.2 list a selection of these codes and
standards.
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Table: Codes relating to materials and components

Table 1.2 : Codes relating to loading and to the design of structures

Malaysian Equivalent of Eurocode:

MS EN 1990:2009
Basis of structural design
MS EN 1991-1-1:2009 - Actions on structures
MS EN 1992-1-1:2009 Design of concrete structures
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Design working life

EC0 gives indicative values of design working life, as shown in Table
1.4 . This manual is about the design of class 4 structures.
Table 1.4 : Design working life of structures

1.6

Limit State

Both BS8110 and EC2 are based on ultimate limit state. The
purpose of limit state design is to achieve acceptable probabilities
that a structure will not become unfit for its intended use - meaning
that it will not reach a limit state. Therefore in any way a structure
become unfit for use will constitute a limit state. The design aim is
to avoid any such condition being reached during the expected life
of the structure.
The two principal types of limit state are:
(a)

Ultimate limit state

The structure must be able to withstand, with adequate factor of

safety against collapse, the loads for which it is designed to ensure
the safety of the occupant and the building itself. Examples of
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ultimate limit state are overturning, buckling, collapse or internal

explosion.
(b)

Serviceability limit state

Conditions whereby a structure is not fit to be used or the occupant

feels unsafe living in the structure. Generally serviceability limit
states are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

Deflection the appearance of any part of a structure must

not be adversely affected by deflections.
Cracking local damage due to cracking and spalling
must not affect the appearance, efficiency and durability of
the structure.
Durability must be considered in terms of the proposed
life of the structure and its conditions of exposure.
Excessive vibration may cause discomfort
Fatigue must be considered if cyclic loading is likely.
Fire resistance must be considered in terms of resistance
to collapse.

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1.7

Loading/Actions

Generally loads or actions cannot be predicted accurately and it is

uneconomical to design using the largest load that may be
encountered by the structure. Therefore in design practice
characteristic load/actions is used with a low probabilities that it
will be exceeded during the lifetime of the structure.
Actions is the Eurocode terminology for loads and imposed
deformations. EC2 defines an action as a force or load applied to a
structure. Actions are categorized into:
Permanent(Gk) actions is the fix load and usually unchanged in
its location, example self-weight of structures, finishes(screed, tiles
etc), partition walls (metal or brick), fittings, ceiling and fixed
equipment such as water pipes and air-condition ducts. Standard
characteristic loadings can be found in BS EN 1991, Eurocode 1
Actions on Structures.

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Variable(Qk) actions is any load that is temporarily on a structure.

There are 2 types of variable action namely imposed and wind
load.
(i)
Imposed load: Any gravity load, e.g people,
furniture etc. Example of selected imposed loads
are shown below:

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(ii)
Wind load: Reference on wind load can be obtained
in Part 4 of EC 2. Wind load depends on wind speed, building
height and size, etc. Reference wind velocity for a locality is
defined as mean wind velocity at 10 m above farmland averaged
over a period of 10 minutes with a return period of 50 years. EC2
requires that effects of horizontal loads due to geometric
imperfections are considered in addition to effects of horizontal
loads due to wind.
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EXAMPLE
The reinforced concrete floor beam as shown below is used to support a
concrete slab of 6 m width and having a thickness of 100 mm. The slab also
carries a 13 mm thick plaster ceiling for the floor below. The beam also
carries a brick wall of width 100 mm and 1.2 m in height. Determine the load
on the beam as kN per metre length of the beam.
Given: The density of concrete = 25 kN/m3
Density of brick = 22 kN/m3
Area load of 12 mm plaster = 0.21 kN/m2

100 mm

1.2 m

Brick Wall

Slab
100 mm

Beam
6m

13 mm (plaster ceiling)

Fig. 2.1: Cross-section of beam, slab and wall

Solution
Using the data given:
Concrete slab :

25 x 0.1 x 6

Plaster ceiling :

0.21 x 6

Brick wall

22 x 0.1 x 1.2 = 2.64 kN/m

Total

= 15 kN/m
= 1.26 kN/m

= 18.9 kN/m
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1.8

Design Load

Design loads for Ultimate limit State are obtained by multiplying

characteristic loads by appropriate partial safety factor as shown
below.
Permanent Action
(Dead Load)
Gk
G
G

Variable Actions
(Imposed and Wind load)
Qki
Q
Q

Unfavourable

Favourable

Unfavourable

Favourable

1.35

1.0

1.5

Earth and
Water

1.35

The terms favourable and unfavourable refer to the effect of the

action(s) on the design situation under consideration. For example,
if a beam, continuous over several spans, is to be designed for the
largest sagging bending moment it will have to sustain any action
that has the effect of increasing the bending moment will be
considered unfavourable whilst any action that reduces the
bending moment will be considered to be favourable.
Partial safety factors for actions(f) is applied due to:
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)

design assumptions and inaccuracy of calculation

possible unusual increases in the magnitude of the actions
unforeseen stress redistributions
constructional inaccuracies

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For simply supported beams, the partial safety factors for

permanent,G and variable actions, Q will normally be 1.35 and
1.5 respectively.
For checking ultimate limit states (ULS) of bending, shear and
compression:
GG k + QQk = 1.35Gk + 1.50 Qk

For checking serviceability limit states (SLS) of cracking and

deflection:
GG k + QQk = 1.00Gk + 1.00 Qk

Placing of Loading for analysis

In determining the maximum moment for simply supported beam
the load is placed as shown below:

For continuous beams, clause 2.5.1.2 of EC2 recommends that the

following load cases will generally be sufficient:
1.

2.

Alternate spans carrying maximum loads with the others

carrying minimum load.
Any two adjacent spans carrying maximum load with the
reminder carrying minimum load.
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UK NA recommends (1):

Examples of Ultimate Design Loadings for continuous beam is as

shown below:
1.35 gk + 1.5 qk

1.0 gk

1.35 gk + 1.5 qk

Elastic analysis such moment distributed method can be used to

determine the bending moment of the continuous beam.
EXAMPLE 1
A rectangular beam of size 200 x 500 mm and length 5 m is simply
supported. If the beam is to carry a characteristic live load of 5
kN/m calculate the ultimate design load in kN/m to be carried by
the beam.
Given : weight of concrete = 24 kN/m3
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ANSWER:
Dead weight of beam(Permanent Load) = 0.2 x 0.5 x24 = 2.4 kN/m
Live load = 5 kN/m
Design load = 1.35 x 2.4 + 1.5 x 5 = 10.74 kN/m

EXAMPLE 2
Determine the design value for load for a cable which support a
total characteristic permanent load of 3.0 kN and a characteristic
variable load of 2.0 kN as shown below:

Design load = G x permanent load + Q x variable load

= 1.35 x 3.0
+
1.5 x 2.0
= 7.05 kN

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Example
A simply supported rectangular beam of 6 m span carries characteristic
dead (excluding self weight of beam), gk, and imposed load, qk, loads of 8
kN/m and 6 kN/m respectively. The beam dimensions are breadth, b, 275
mm and height, h, 450 mm. Calculate:
(i) design load
(ii) reaction at the supports.
(iii)maximum design bending moment at centre of span.

Solution
qk=8 kN/m

275mm

gk=3kN/m

450mm

6m

Ra

Self-weight of the beam = 25 x 0.275 x 0.45 = 3.1 kN/m

Total characteristic dead load = 8 + 3.1

= 11.1 kN/m

(i) Design load = 1.35 x 11.1 + 1.5 x 6 = 24.0 kN/m

(ii) Reaction at support, Ra = Rb = 24 x 6 /2 = 72 kN
(iii) The maximum design bending moment occurs at the centre of a simply
supported beam.
Mmax = wL2/8 = 24 x 62/8 = 108 kNm

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Rb

Material Strength
The strength of materials upon which a design is based are
normally those strengths below which results are unlikely to fail.
These are called characteristic action. For a large sample of a
material tested, the distribution of strength will approximately
normal so that a frequency distribution curve would be of the
form as shown below:

From the graph above, the characteristic action is defined:

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These characteristic values represent the limits within which at

least 90% of values lie in practice. It is to be expected that not
more than 5% will exceed the upper limit and not more than 5%
will fall below the lower limit.
EXAMPLE:

Characteristic strength of concrete(fck)

The concrete strength is assessed by measuring the crushing
strength of cylinders or cube of concrete made from the mix as
shown below. These are usually cured, and tested after 28 days
according to standard procedures.

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Concrete of a given strength is identified by its class a Class

25/30 concrete has a characteristic cylinder strength(fck) of 25
N/mm2 and cube strength of 30 N/mm2. The table below shows a
list of commonly used classes.
(If a cube and a cylinder are made of the same concrete then the
cube will achieve a higher strength because the steel platens of the
compression testing machine exert a greater lateral restraint on a
stocky cube than they do on a more slender cylinder )
Concrete grades to BS 8500 and BS EN 206

Characteristic strength of steel(fyk)

Reinforcement Type

Characteristic Strength
(N/mm2) fyk

Hot Rolled Mild steel

High Yield Steel
High Yield Steel
High Yield Steel

250
410
460
500

Symbol
R (CP110,BS8110)
Y(CP110)
T (BS8110)
H (EC2)

Grade 250 bars are hot-rolled mild steel bars which usually has
smooth surface so that the bond with the concrete is by adhesion.
Can be readily bent and use as links in beams and columns. (In
European Union and UK plain bars are no longer available)
Grade 460 & 500(Eurocode 2) are high yield bars with ribbed
surface as shown below:

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Deformed bars have a mechanical bond with the concrete, thus

enhancing ultimate bond stresses. The cross-sectional areas of
various sizes of bars and the cross-sectional area per unit width of
slab are shown below.

Cross-sectional area according to size and number

(This table is used in reinforced concrete beam and column design)

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Sectional areas per metre width for various bar sizes and spacing (mm 2 /m)
(This table is used when designing reinforced concrete slab)

Design Strength of Material

In order to take account of the difference between actual and
laboratory values, local weaknesses and inaccuracies in the
assessment of the resistance of sections, the characteristic strengths
fk are divided by an appropriate partial safety factor for material
m.
Design strength =

fk
m

Partial safety factors for Strength of Material

(Table 2.3, EC2)
Combination

Concrete, c

Fundamental

1.5
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Steel
reinforcements or
prestressing tendon,
s
1.15

Partial safety factor for material(m) is applied due to:

(1)

(2)

The actual strength in a member will differ from that

measured in a carefully prepared test specimen and it
is particularly true for concrete for placing,
compaction and curing are so important to the
strength. Steel, on the other hand, is relatively
consistent material requiring a small factor of safety.
The severity of the limit state being considered.
Thus, higher values are taken for the ultimate limit
state than serviceability limit state.

Stress-Strain Relationship For Concrete and Steel

When a member of a structure is loaded it will deform and create
stress and strain inside the member. Understanding the stress and
strain of concrete and steel reinforcement is important to enable us
to understand the analysis and design of a reinforced concrete
member.
Concrete
Short-term stress-strain curves for concrete and steel can be found
in Fig. 3.3 (EC2) in an idealised form which can be used in the
analysis of member sections as shown below
.

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According to EC2 clause 3.1.6:

fcd is the ultimate design stress and is given by:

f ck 0.85 f ck

c
1.5

= 0.567 fck

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( = 0.85 is to allow for the difference between the bending

strength and the cylinder crushing strength. c = 1.5 is the partial
safety factor for strength of concrete)
Ultimate Strain
The ultimate strain of concrete before failure occurs is given as
follow:
cu2 = 0.0035 is the ultimate strain for classes of concrete
C50/60
c2 = 0.002
Steel
The short-term design stress-strain curve for reinforcement as
proposed by EC2 is as shown below:

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The behaviour of steel is the same in tension and compression

being linear in the elastic range up to the design yield stress fyk/s
where fyk is the characteristic yield stress and s is the partial
factor of safety. (fyk/s = fyk/1.15 = 0.87 fyk)
Design Yield Strain
In the elastic range, stress = elastic modulus x strain
Design yield strain y = design stress/elastic modulus
= fyk/s /Es
For fyk = 500 N/mm2
y

= 500/1.15 x 200x103
= 0.00217

For fyk = 460 N/mm2

= 460/1.15x200x103
= 0.002

The Behaviour of Beam in Flexure

When a reinforced concrete beam is loaded it will bend as shown
below. The intensity of deflection depends on the bending moment
diagram. The bending of the beam causes one face of beam to
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shorten due to the compressive force and the other face lengthen
due to the tensile force. The tensile region will experience cracks
since concrete is weak in tension. Reinforcement has to be
provided in this region to overcome the problem.

Tension reinforcement and failure of a beam

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The position of tension reinforcement in a cantilever beam

The tension zone and the positioning of tension reinforcement in a

continuous beam

EXERCISE
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The diagram below is bending moment diagram of a continuous

beam. Sketch the position of tension steel on the beam.

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