HEBEL DESIGN ANALYSIS PROGRAM

by
Ghosson Al-Khaled
-----------------------------------------------------

A Thesis Presented to the

FACULTY OF THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF BUILDING SCIENCE
May 2002

Copyright 2002

Ghosson Al-Khaled

Abstract
The topic presented in this thesis is a structural/design computer program
developed for the Hebel AAC (Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) block building system
to help engineers and architects working in this field. Computer programs are widely
used in construction companies for many tasks, including structural analysis and
design. The presented program is expected to save time, reduce human error and thus
contribute to higher productivity and facilitate the exploration of alternate design
solutions.
The program is developed in Visual Basic, using the Hebel analysis/design
code, emphasizing a user-friendly graphic interface. Input and output are described,
including the graphic interface, as well as the programs algorithm and underlying
structural theory. Examples are included to demonstrate the programs use and
capabilities.
Key words: AAC, Autoclaved Aerated Concrete, Aerated Concrete, Concrete Block,
Hebel, Lightweight Concrete.

2.2 Hebel Aerated Concrete Products

(Paraphrased from Hebel Handbook, 1997)
2.2.1

Hebel Products
The product line of Hebel is broken into reinforced and un-reinforced precast AAC. Fig. 2.7 shows Hebel the product and the average compressive
strength for each category.

Hebel AAC
Products

Reinforced

Unreinforced

Floor
slabs

Block
unit

G2

G4

G6

GB3.3

Roof
slabs

Wall
Panel

Lintel

GB4.4

2.5

5.0

7.5

3.5

5.0

N/mm2

363

725

1,088

508

725

psi

Fig. 2.7: Hebel AAC products and minimum compressive strengths

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A. Hebel Blocks
Hebel blocks are manufactured to the closest tolerance. A thin bed of mortar is
used to lay the blocks forming basement walls, external walls, internal walls and
infill walls. Moreover, Hebel blocks with tongue and groove are also manufactured.
Fig. 2.8 shows Hebel block dimensions.

Fig. 2.8: Hebel block dimensions (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

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Hebel blocks are broken into three categories according to average

compressive strength. Table 2.1 shows the product specifications.

Strength
AAC G 2

AAC G 4

AAC G6

Units

Average compressive

2.5

5.0

7.5

N/mm

strength

363

725

1,088

psi

Category

Gross density

400

500

500

600

700

Kg/m

Thermal conductivity

0.11

0.14

0.14

0.16

0.18

W/(mK)

Modulus of elasticity E

1250

1750

1750

2250

270

N/mm

Table 2.1: Hebel blocks specifications (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

B. Hebel Jumbo Blocks

Jumbo blocks have the same physical and structural properties as Hebel
blocks, the main difference lies in the size. Fig. 2.9 shows Hebel Jumbo
blocks dimension.

Fig. 2.9: Hebel Jumbo block dimension (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

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C. Hebel Lintels
The dimensions of Hebel lintels match those of Hebel blocks, ensuring quick
incorporation into masonry. Various types of lintels are available depending on the
purpose:
a. Loadbearing Lintels as shown in Fig. 2.10.
b. Non-Loadbearing Lintels as shown in Fig. 2.11.
c. Non-Loadbearing Arch Lintels as shown in Fig. 2.12.

Fig. 2.10: Loadbearing lintel (Hebel

Handbook, 1997)

Fig. 2.11: Non-Loadbearing lintel (Hebel

Handbook, 1997)

Fig. 2.12: Non-Loadbearing arch lintel (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

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Hebel Arches are rounded. Special shapes and sizes can be had on order.
Table 2.2 shows table of non-loadbearing Hebel lintels dimensions and a
standard dead load of 8.4 kN/m.

Table 2.2: Standard dimensions (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

The standard dimensions for loadbearing lintels are shown in Table 2.3 (dead
load 8.4 kN/m).

Table 2.3: Standard Dimensions for loadbearing lintels (Hebel Handbook, 1997)
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D. Hebel Floor Panels

Hebel floor panels are large, reinforced, loadbearing components of AAC.
There are various Hebel floor panels of various thickness and spans as well as
loadbearing capacities. They are suitable for various floor dimensions in a building.
Moreover, Hebel floor panels are suitable for use as basement or top floors due to the
insulating properties. Fig. 2.13 shows Hebel floor panel dimensions.
Fig. 2.13: Hebel floor panel dimensions (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

Hebel floor panels are broken into two categories according to compressive
strength. Table 2.4 shows product specifications for floor panels.
Strength Category

AAC -GB3.3

AAC-GB4.4

Units

Average compressive strength

3.5

5.0

N/mm

Gross density

600

600

700

Kg/m

Thermal conductivity

0.16

0.16

0.18

W/(mK)

Modulus of elasticity E

2250

2250 2750

N/mm

Table 2.4: Hebel floor panel specifications (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

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E. Hebel Roof Panels

Hebel roof panels, like Hebel floor panels, are made of reinforced AAC. They are
suitable for any roofing of any kind. Also, Hebel roof panels have the same thickness
and spans with different loadbearing capacities as floor panels. Hebel roof panels can
be constructed as flat or pitched roofs. Table 2.5 shows the product specifications for
roof panels.

Strength Category

AAC -GB3.3

AAC-GB4.4

Units

Average compressive strength

3.5

5.0

N/mm

Gross density

500

600

600

700

Kg/m

Thermal conductivity

0.14

0.16

0.16

0.18

W/(mK)

Modulus of elasticity E

1750

2250

2250 2750

N/mm

Table 2.5: Hebel roof panel specifications (Hebel Handbook, 1997)

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Part II: DESIGN ANALYSIS PROGRAM

Introducing Hebel Design Analysis Program
3.1 Introduction and Program Overview
The HDA (Hebel Design Analysis) program is designed with an interface that
is familiar to engineers and architects working with the Hebel system in Kuwait.
HDA has the same calculation schedule sheets used for manual calculations. HDA is
programmed to match the conditions and environment of the Middle East. HDA
analyses Hebel reinforced AAC products. Moreover, it can summarize Hebel
components for building project summing up the number and the volume of items.
The program could compute the rebar design for a single floor and roof slab
or a group of slabs in a project. A check of the wall design is done in an excel sheet
embedded in the program to allow the user to see the equations and computations.
Furthermore, HDA includes a table of common lintels for easy selection by the user.
HDA also has a help glossary that includes brief definitions of any variables
and terms used in the program. User input for is mainly slab and wall dimensions
and load values. HDA starts with a simple and easy to use interface. There is a
common tool bar menu and four command buttons. Each command button has a
unique picture visualizing the buttons function.

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Fig. 3.1: HDA home window

The user has the choices of roof design, wall design, or lintel selection. The
four options can be accessed either by clicking on the icon buttons or by
selecting from the menu bar. When the user clicks on any option, a new
window opens to serve that option selected.

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Wall design check

By clicking the wall option, a new window will pop out as shown in Fig. 3.2.
This window will inform the user that the wall design check will be done
using excel calculation spread sheet.

Fig. 3.2: HDA wall design check window

The wall design window has a sample picture of the actual excel sheet that
the user will use to check his/her wall design. The user will either choose to
check the wall design or returning to the home window.
Fig. 3.3 shows the Excel spreadsheet to enter wall design parameters.

49

Fig. 3.3: Excel spreadsheet used to enter wall design

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Lintel Selection

The lintel selection option connects the user to the lintel schedule window.
The schedule contains all reinforced lintels available in Hebel plant of
Kuwait. The user will select lintels according to the imposed loading and
dimensions required (Fig. 3.4).

Fig. 3.4: Lintel selection window

The user can select any number of lintels required for a project from the table
in the lintel window, and specify the number of lintels required on each floor in the
project. The columns at right indicate the floor levels: basement, ground floor, first
floor, second floor and roof. After pressing the Totals button, HDA calculates the

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total number of lintels and their volume. The lintel schedule is then ready for printing
or saving for future use.

Slab Design

Pressing the slab icon at the home window displays three options: Single Slab
Design, Project Floor Slab Design, or Project Roof Slab Design (Fig. 3.5).
The user can either select to design a single floor or roof slab or a project
with floor or roof slabs. For the single slab design window, roof or floor slab
can be designed using a new window shown in Fig. 3.6, which is accessed by
hitting the single slab design button. The project slab design option will
lead to either project floor slab design or project roof design. Fig. 3.7 shows
project floor design

Fig. 3.5: Slab design option window

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Single Slab Design Option

The user must input slab dimensions, live load and dead load as design
requirement input for this window, followed by selecting the slab type to be
analyzed: floor slab or roof slab. The program will then analyze the slab with
required reinforcement. For a detailed example, please refer to section 3.3.

Fig. 3.6 Single slab design window

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Project Slab Design Option

Fig. 3.7: Project floor design window

The following input is required for the project floor design:

a. Position (optional input to reference the slab to the working drawings)
b. L: length of the slab in meters
c. W: width of the slab in meters
d. H: height of the slab in meters
e. LL: live load in kN/m
f. D.L: dead load in kN/m
g. Bast: optional input for the user, indicates the number of floor slabs in
the basement floor
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h. GrFl: optional input to indicate the number of floor slabs in the ground
floor
i. 1st ,2nd Fl and Roof: optional input to indicate number of floor slabs in the
first floor, second floor and the roof
The output will be as follows:
a. Total: will calculate the total number of slabs
b. Type: will show what type of slab strength either GB3.3 or GB4.4
c. LZ: size and number of main bottom reinforcement
d. QZ: size and number of transverse bottom reinforcement
e. LT: size and number of upper reinforcement
f. QT: size and number of transverse upper reinforcement
g. Volume: the total volume of floor slab
For detailed example, please refer to section 3.3.
The window can be saved as a file and printed for future reference. The
project roof design window is identical to the project floor design window,
only the internal computation code is different.

Help file

The help file has a search option to allow the user search for variables and
word definitions used in the program. Help is accessed, clicking the help
button from any window (Fig. 3.8).

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Fig. 3.8:Help window

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3.2 Program Structure and Methodology to Analyze and Design

The program structure and methodology are easier to understand in a
program flowchart. The program main features are the floor and roof slab
design modules. Fig. 3.9 shows the slab design flowchart.
Command Calculate

Total Load q

Assume G.B 3.3, 4.4

Mt, Mmax = (q.L2.b)/8

Assume a rebar #5,6,8,9

Increase hs

Qmax = (q.L.b)/2

Calculate kh value

Design Table Kz, Z=Kz.h

Check steel stress

Shear, anchorage

Calculate required reinforcement

Fig. 3.9: Slab design flowchart

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The slab design flowchart clearly visualizes the program sequence steps. The
most complex algorithm was for the program to select the kz value from the
design table. As discussed in section 2.3, after calculating the kh value the kz
value should be taken from the design table. An array was created to
implement the design table, and Lagranges interpolation polynomial method
was used. Lagranges interpolation equation is:

Lagranges interpolation polynomial (Gellert et al, 1980)

The interpolation equation based on Lagranges polynomial interpolation was
developed as follows:
Y2 = (Y3 *( X2 X1 ) + Y1*( X3 - X2 ) ) / ( X3 - X1 )
Where
Y1, Y2, Y3, X1, X2, and X3 are part in a set of data in the design table and
Y2 is the unknown value to be interpolated, using the previous and next
values in the design data table.

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3.3 Example
This section will illustrate the use of HDA on a two- story house built in
Kuwait using the Hebel system. The example will illustrate the design of:

Walls

Floor and roof panels

Lintels

The architectural and production drawings will be shown along with each
item to demonstrate the required input (see appendix A for complete plans)

Wall design is for the highlighted ground floor wall (Fig. 3.10)

Fig. 3.10: Ground floor plan (Acico, 2001)

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The wall is checked using the excel spreadsheet mentioned in section 3.1.
Table. 3.1 shows the input required for the wall design of this example.
Enter Data
Height of the Building
Wall thickness
Wall length

H=
t=
b=

Cross section area of wall b * t =

Wall class

class =

Clear height of story

Effective span length
Dead load of upper wall
Dead load of slab
Wall own weight
Total design load

11.875 m
0.250 m
3.850 m
0.963 m2
2
EXTERNAL WALL

must be

H <= 20 m

If area < 0.10 m2 consider piers or

"short wall"

class = 1 For internal walls

class = 2 For extenal walls

hs =

3.50 m
hs must be <=3.5 m
Supported floor/roof
L=
4.15 m
must be L <= 6.0 m

Nup =
A=
G=

77.00 KN
50.50 KN
20.50 KN

Nft =

148.00 KN

Live load on the slab: p < 5.0 KN/m2

Table 3.1: Data requirements for wall design check (HDA)

Wall dimensions are: t = 0.25; L = 3.85 m (Fig. 3.11)

Story height = 3.5 m (see section in Appendix A)

Fig. 3.11: Wall close-up (Acico, 2001)

Dead load of upper wall is calculated from the sum of all the following
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loads and then multiplied by the wall length:

a. Self load of upper wall (first floor) =

5.3 kN/m

b. Load from first floor roof slab (DL + LL) =

11.7 kN/m

c. Ring beam of first floor =

1.1 kN/m

d. Load of parapet =

1.9 kN/m

Total = 20 kN/m * 3.85 m =

77 kN

Dead and live loads of slab on the wall is 13.1 kN/m * 3.85 m =

50.5 kN

Wall own weight = 5.3 kN/m * 3.85 m =

20.5 kN

Define number of wall restrains as described in 2.3

Wall restrains = 3 (one side plus slabs above and below, see Fig. 3.11)
WALL RESTRAINS AND BUCKLING HEIGHT
1 # of restrains

(number of wall restrains)

2 2 restrains

N/A

3 3 restrains (b)

b'=restraining wall to free edge distance

4 4 restrains (b)

b = distance between restraining walls

5 Coefficient ()

6 Buckling height hk =
7 Slenderness

hk/t =

3 2, 3, or 4
N/A
b=3.725 b'<=15t
N/A b <=30t
=0.90
hk=3.15 hk= hs
hk/t=12.6 hk/t< 25

Table 3.2: Type of wall restrains (HDA)

The spreadsheet calculates coefficients required for the wall design check
(Table 3.2).

Finally, the spreadsheet shows at the bottom of the table if the wall is an
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acceptable design or not; after comparing the computed with the permissible
compressive stress as shown in Table 3.3.
ACTUAL COMPRESSIVE STRESS OF MASONRY WALL

Actual compressive
stress

0.15

MN/m2

Nft / b t

CONCLUSION
0.91

>
0.15
THE WALL IS ACCEPTABLE

Table 3.3: Conclusion of wall design check (HDA)

Lintel selection
Lintels are selected according to imposed load and dimensions. Fig. 3.12
shows required reinforced lintels for the ground floor.

Fig. 3.12: Ground floor plan (Acico, 2001)

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HDA calculates number and volume of all required lintels (Fig. 3.13)

Fig. 3.13: List of Lintels for sample house (HDA)

Floor slab design

The floor slab design example will be done for the ground floor
Fig. 3.14 shows the ground floor slab production drawings

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Fig. 3.14: Ground floor slab production drawing (Acico, 2001)

The production drawing shows the slab arrangement on the loadbearing

walls. The slabs have unique indexes shown on the drawing. All slabs with
the same index number have the same slab dimensions and type. These
indexes are filled in the position column in the project floor design schedule
of the HDA program (Fig. 3.15).

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Fig. 3.15: Floor slab analysis screen (HDA)

Fig. 3.15 shows the program has automatically calculated all required upper
and lower reinforcement for the floor slabs.

Roof slab design

The roof design example illustrates a single roof slab design. Dimensions and
loads will be the input for this example. Fig. 3.16 shows a single roof slab design
input, which is a roof slab taken for the 2nd floor plan.

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Fig. 3.16: Single roof slab design input window (HDA)

After inputting the required dimensions and loads for the single roof slab, the
slab type should be also selected as roof slab. The calculated output of this
single slab design is illustrated in Fig. 3.17 for easier understanding.

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Fig. 3.17: Results window for the single roof slab design (HDA)
3.4 Programming Language
Hebel Design Analysis (HDA) was programmed using Visual Basic. Visual
Basic is a fairly easy to learn language, compared to other languages, such as
visual C++ and Java. Moreover, Visual Basic can easily assist the conversion
of user input into graphic output. Also, the availability of teaching tools
makes it easy to learn Visual Basic from many resources such as; books, Web
sites, and previous programs. For the full code used in the HDA program
please refer to appendix B.
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Conclusions and Recommendations

4.1 Conclusions
The HDA (Hebel Design Analysis) program is mainly designed for architects
and engineers in the Middle East. The program objective is to save time and reduce
human error for those working with Hebel system analysis and design. The program
has actually been compared with manual computations, which proves HAD actually
saves two to three working hours. The manual calculations to analyze and design the
single family residence of chapter 3.3 with the Hebel system takes up to four hours;
while HDA takes only one hour. The HDA program serves its purpose by reducing
time and thus contributing to higher productivity.
The main challenge is to learn the Hebel system and use HDA by uninitiated
engineers and architects. This will be addressed in the following Recommendations.
For example, input combines dead and live load together in the wall design check.
This is confusing to new users and may cause errors. However for experienced users
HDA can be a powerful tool to increase productivity and reduce potential errors.

4.1.1 ASD vs. Strength Method

The Hebel design method described in chapter 2.3 is based on Allowable
Stress Design (ASD), but different from ASD in the US prior to the Strength method.
While ASD implies safety factors by allowable stress, the strength method implies
safety factors primarily by factored load, multiplying dead load by 1.4 and live
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load 1.7, for example. ASD in the US assumed a triangular compression stress block
for concrete beams (Fig. 4.1 B). At ultimate strength, concrete yields which results
in a parabolic stress block (Fig. 4.1 C). The Strength Method substitutes the
parabolic stress block by an idealized rectangular stress block (Fig. 4.1 D and 4.2).
The Hebel method, while based on allowable stress, also assumes a parabolic stress
block, presumably considering the effect of non-linear stress/strain relations of
concrete even at moderate stress levels (Fig. 4.3).

Fig. 4.1: Stress blocks in concrete beam (A): ASD (B), Ultimate strength (C),
Strength design method (D) (Schierle, 1996)

Fig. 4.2: Strength design stress block

(Spiegel, 1992)

Fig. 4.3: Concrete stress/Strain curves

(ACI, 1990)

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