2.4.

2 Instantaneous strain
The magnitude of the instantaneous strain ε(t) caused by either compressive or tensile stress
e
depends on the magnitude of the applied stress, the rate at which the stress is applied, the age
and the properties of the concrete and the proportions of its constituent materials. Consider the
uniaxial instantaneous strain versus compressive stress curve shown in Figure 2.4. When the
applied stress is less than about half of the compressive strength, the curve is essentially linear,
and the instantaneous strain is usually con-s sidered to be elastic (fully recoverable). In this
low-stress range, the secant

Figure 2.4 Typical stress vs instantaneous strain curve for concrete in compression.
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modulus Ec does not vary significantly with stress and is only slightly smaller than the initial
tangent modulus. At higher stress levels, the curve is decidedly non-linear and a significant
proportion of the instantaneous strain is irrecoverable.
In concrete structures, compressive concrete stresses caused by the day-to-day service loads
rarely exceed half of the compressive strength. It is therefore reasonable to assume that the
instantaneous behaviour of concrete at service loads is linear-elastic and that instantaneous
strain is given by

(2.6)

The value of the elastic modulus Ec increases with time as the concrete gains strength and
stiffness. Ec also depends on the rate of application of the stress and increases as the loading
rate increases. For most practical purposes, these variations are usually ignored and it is
common practice to assume that Ec is constant with time and equal to its initial value
calculated at the time of first loading, . For stress levels less than about , and for
stresses applied over a relatively short period (say up to 5 min), a numerical estimate of the
elastic modulus may be obtained from Pauw’s well known expression (Pauw 1960):

(2.7)

where ρis the density of concrete (about 2400 kg/m3 for normal weight concrete) and
is the average compressive strength in MPa at the time of first loading. Equation 2.7 is
specified in both ACI 318–83 (1983) and AS 3600 (1988).
When the stress is applied more slowly, say over a period of 1 day, significant
additional deformation occurs owing to the rapid early development of creep. For the
estimation of short-term deformation in such a case, it is recommended that the elastic
modulus given by Equation 2.7 be reduced by about 20% (Gilbert 1988).
The in-service performance of a concrete structure is very much affected by concrete’s
ability (or lack of it) to carry tension. It is therefore necessary to consider the instantaneous
behaviour of concrete in tension, as well as in compression. Prior to cracking, the
instantaneous strain of concrete in tension consists of both elastic and inelastic components.
In design, however, concrete is usually taken to be elastic-brittle in tension, i.e. at stress levels
less than the tensile strength of concrete the instantaneous strain versus stress relationship is
assumed to be linear. Although the initial elastic modulus in tension is a little higher than that
in compression, it is usual to assume that both values are equal and given by Equation 2.7.
Prior to
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cracking, therefore, the instantaneous strain in tension may be calculated using Equation 2.6.
When the tensile strength is reached, cracking occurs and the concrete stress perpendicular to
the crack is usually asssumed to be zero. In reality, if the rate of tensile deformation is
controlled, and crack widths are small, concrete can carry some tension across a crack owing
to friction on the rough, mating surfaces.
Poisson’s ratio for concrete, ν,lies within the range 0.15–0.22 and for most practical
purposes may be taken equal to 0.2.

2.4.3 Creep strain

For concrete subjected to a constant sustained stress, the gradual development of creep strain
was illustrated in Figure 2.3. In the period immediately after first loading, creep develops
rapidly, but the rate of increase slows appreciably with time. Creep is generally thought to
approach a limiting value as the time after first loading approaches infinity. Approximately
50% of the final creep develops in the first 2–3 months and about 90% after 2–3 years. After
several years under load, the rate of change of creep with time is very small. Creep of concrete
has its origins in the hardened cement paste and is caused by a number of different
mechanisms. A comprehensive treatment of creep in plain concrete was given by Neville et al.
(1983).
Many factors influence the magnitude and rate of development of creep, including the
properties of the concrete mix and its constituent materials. In general, as the concrete
quality increases, the capacity of concrete to creep decreases. At a particular stress level,
creep in higher-strength concrete is less than that in lower-strength concrete. An increase in
either the aggregate content or the maximum aggregate size reduces creep, as does the use of
a stiffer aggregate type. Creep also decreases as the water-to-cement ratio is reduced.
Creep depends on the environment, and increases as the relative humidity decreases. Creep
is therefore greater when accompanied by shrinkage (drying). Creep is also greater in thin
members with large surface area to volume ratios, such as slabs. Near the surface of a
member, creep takes place in a drying environment and is therefore greater than in regions
remote from a drying surface. In addition to the relative humidity, creep is dependent on the
ambient temperature. A temperature rise increases the deformability of the cement paste and
accelerates drying, and thus increases creep. At 40°C, creep in concrete is about 25% higher
than that at 20°C. The dependence of creep on temperature is much more significant at more
elevated temperatures.
In addition to the environment and the characteristics of the concrete mix, creep depends on
the loading history, in particular the magnitude of the stress and the age of the concrete when
the stress was first applied. When the sustained concrete stress is less than about
(and this is usually the
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case in real structures at service loads), creep is proportional to stress and is sensibly known
as linear creep. At higher sustained stress levels, creep increases at a faster rate and becomes
non-linear with respect to stress. From a structural design point of view, non-linear creep is of
little interest and only the effects of linear creep are considered here. The age of the concrete
when the stress is first applied has a marked influence on the magnitude of creep. Concrete
loaded at an early age creeps more than concrete loaded at a later age.
Creep strain is made up of a recoverable component [called the delayed elastic strain, εd(t)]
and an irrecoverable component [called flow, εf(t)]. These components are illustrated by the
creep strain versus time curve in Figure 2.5a, which is caused by the stress history shown in
Figure 2.5b. The delayed elastic strain develops rapidly and is of the order of 40% of the
elastic strain. The flow component is sometimes further sub-divided into basic flow and
drying flow components; however, in structural analysis, it is not usually necessary to
distinguish between these components.
The capacity of concrete to creep is usually measured in terms of the creep coefficient
In a concrete specimen subjected to a constant sustained compressive stress
σofirst applied at age , the creep coefficient at time t is the ratio of creep strain to
instantaneous strain and is represented by

(2.8)

and therefore

(2.9)

Figure 2.5 Recoverable and irrecoverable creep components.

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For stress levels less than about , the creep coefficient is a pure time function,
independent of the applied stress, and has the same shape as the creep-time curve in Figure
2.3. As time approaches infinity, the creep coefficient is assumed to approach a final value
which usually falls within the range 1.5–4.0. A number of the well known
methods for predicting the creep coefficient were described and compared by Gilbert (1988).
Two of the simpler (and, therefore, more useful) approaches for making numerical estimates
of are presented in Section 2.5.
The effect of ageing is illustrated in Figure 2.6. The magnitude of the final creep
coefficient decreases as the age at first loading increases. That is,

(2.10)

This time-hardening or ageing of concrete complicates the calculation of creep strain

caused by a time-varying stress history.
The load-dependent strain at time t caused by a constant sustained stress σo is the sum of
the elastic and creep components and, using Equation 2.9, is given by

(2.11)

where is known as the effective modulus and is given by

(2.12)

If the stress is gradually applied to the concrete, rather than suddenly applied, the subsequent
creep strain is reduced significantly, since the concrete ages during the period of application
of the stress. This can be accom-

Figure 2.6 Effect of age at first loading on the creep coefficient (Gilbert 1988).
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modated analytically by the use of a reduced or adjusted creep coefficient. For an increment
of stress, σ,applied gradually to the concrete, the load-dependent strain may be obtained by
modifying Equation 2.11 as follows:

(2.13)

where

(2.14)

is often called the age-adjusted effective modulus, and χis an ageing coefficient first
introduced by Trost (1967) and later used by Bazant (1972). Like the creep coefficient, the
ageing coefficient depends on the duration of loading and the age at first loading and varies
between 0.6 and 1.0. For most practical purposes, χcan be taken as 0.8. More accurate
estimates of χbased on the creep predictive models of ACI 209 (1978) and the CEB Model
Code (1978) have been made by Bazant (1972) and Neville et al. (1983), respectively.
The above discussion is concerned with compressive creep. In many practical situations,
however, creep of concrete in tension is also of interest. Tensile creep, for example, plays an
important part in delaying the onset of cracking caused by restrained shrinkage. The
mechanisms of tensile creep are thought to be different from those of compressive creep, but
at the same stress levels the magnitudes are similar. In design, it is usual to assume that the
creep coefficients in tension and in compression are identical. Although not strictly correct,
this assumption simplifies calculations and does not usually introduce serious inaccuracies.
A comprehensive comparison between tensile and compressive creep was made by Neville et
al (1983).

2.4.4 Shrinkage strain

Shrinkage is the time-dependent strain measured in an unloaded and unrestrained specimen at
constant temperature. Concrete begins shrinking when drying commences and continues to
increase with time at a decreasing rate, as illustrated in Figure 2.3. Shrinkage is assumed to
approach a final value as time approaches infinity and is dependent on all the factors which
affect the drying of concrete, including the relative humidity, the mix characteristics (in
particular, the water content and water-to-cement ratio), and the size and shape of the member.
Shrinkage increases as the relative humidity of the surrounding air decreases. The drier the
atmosphere, the more rapid is the rate of drying
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of the concrete and the larger are both the magnitude and rate of development of shrinkage
strain. A temperature rise accelerates drying and therefore increases the rate of shrinkage.
The amount of drying depends on the initial water content. A concrete specimen with a high
initial water-to-cement ratio will shrink more than a similar specimen made from concrete with
a lower water-to-cement ratio and kept under the same atmospheric conditions. In addition, the
volume and type of aggregate also affect shrinkage. Aggregate provides restraint to deformation
of the cement paste, so that shrinkage tends to decrease if the volume of aggregate is increased
or if a stiffer aggregate is used. Shrinkage in lightweight concrete is therefore considerably
greater (up to 50%) than in normal weight concrete.
The size and shape of the concrete member have a major influence on the magnitude and
rate of development of shrinkage. For a thin member with a large drying surface to volume
ratio, such as a suspended slab or wall, drying takes place rapidly and may be essentially
complete after several years. For the concrete in the interior of thicker members, such as beams
or columns, drying takes place more slowly and may continue throughout the lifetime of the
member. Shrinkage strain therefore varies across the depth (and width) of structural members
and is highest at the surfaces exposed to the atmosphere. In fact, for more massive members,
there is no significant drying (shrinkage) except in the concrete located within about 300 mm
of a drying surface.
Procedures for estimating the mean shrinkage on a cross-section are contained in many
building codes and other technical specifications. Two of the more simple approaches for
making rough estimates of shrinkage strain are presented in Section 2.5.