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Why are the Losses of Prestressed Concrete Given by the Softw

not Match the Manual Calculations?
February 4, 2021 

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Prestress does not remain constant with time. Prestress loss is nothing but the reduction of Design Considerations for Arch
Bridges
initial applied prestress loss to an effective value. Loss of prestressing affects the strength
May 19, 2021
of members and also signi cantly affects the member’s serviceability. Prestress loss is
classi ed into two types: PSC Segmental Box Girder
Bridge Design
 
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1. Immediate losses
Elastic shortening of concrete Special Bridges with Double
Layered Truss Girders
Slip at anchorages immediately after prestressing May 12, 2021

Friction between tendon and duct, and wobble effect

Critical Live Load Pattern for
Skewed Bridges
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2. Time-dependent losses
Creep & shrinkage of concrete
Strut-and-Tie Model: Part 1 -
Relaxation of prestressing tendon Basics
Apr 28, 2021

 
Losses by prestressing types
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The probable reasons for the difference in prestress losses between manual calculation
and midas Civil are as follows:

1. Improper de nition of tendon property or tendon pro le

2. Internal consideration of the software for prestress calculation
3. Consideration of transformed concrete section
4. Consideration of time-dependent properties of concrete
5. Sequence of prestressing considered
6. Prestressing force applied at one end or both ends
 

1. Improper de nition of tendon property, tendon pro le

The common mistakes in this dialogue box are:

- Assigning inappropriate tendon material, improper tendon type.
- Duct diameters to be of adequate size for tendon area
- Consideration of relaxation, entries for friction as well as wobble coe cients, and slip.
- Con rm the type of bonding of tendon with the duct.
- Improper tendon property.
- Incorrect number of assigned elements, curve type, and reference axis selection
- Make sure to input coordinates based on the reference axis selected, whether based on the
element local axis or on the global axis system or along a speci ed curve.
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Curve type, Spline is selected, then the tendon curve would pass smoothly connecting the
entered coordinates i.e. P1, P2, P3, and P4 as shown in the gure below. No abrupt changes
in angles at these locations.

Curve type, Round is selected, radius R has to be entered and this curve would have lines P1-
P2 and P2-P3 as tangents as shown in the gure above, where P1, P2, and P3 are the
coordinates entered. Unless R is 0, the tendon will not pass through P2.
 

 
2. Internal considerations of software for Prestress calculation

Internally, midas Civil divides the elements with tendon pro le assigned to them into 4 parts
and the effects of prestressing are calculated at a total of 5 points (inclusive of i and j ends).
So, when these divisions are not ending at locations where the tendon pro le is having a
major change in the pro le equation (Say, at the curvature of a parabolic pro le), then the
loss calculations wouldn’t be at their most accurate value.
 
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3. Consideration of transformed concrete section

Manual calculations are in general done considering the gross concrete section properties.
The variation in section property due to the tendon is neglected, whereas midas Civil
accounts for the change in property due to the presence of tendons and considers an
equivalent transformed section. However, if this change in section property is to be
neglected, the same could be done under Analysis > Analysis Control > Construction stage >
Beam Section Property Changes as shown below:

4. Consideration of time-dependent properties of concrete

To consider the time-dependent effects such as variation in concrete compressive strength,

creep, and shrinkage, appropriate parameters would have to be de ned, linked with the base
material, and assigned to appropriate elements (Say, only longitudinal and not transverse).
Furthermore, the time-dependent effects are to be considered in the construction stage
analysis control. For de ning and linking these parameters with the base material, options,
as highlighted in the image, are used.

Under Construction Stage analysis control > Time-Dependent Effect Control

the effects of time-dependent behavior like, creep, shrinkage, internal creep calculation
steps, etc. could be controlled. The implications of common options are explained beside the
image below.
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Elastic shortening when manually calculated is usually based on constant initial force. Where
in with the software, elastic shortening could be calculated with the force variation as well,
which might vary the software results as compared to manual calculations.

5. Sequence of prestressing considered

The age of concrete when the tendons are prestressed, the sequence of prestressing should
be carefully assigned in the construction stage. For example, stressing 4 cables at the same
instance yields a different result as compared to stressing each cable with a small time gap.

To prestress the tendons in sequence, ‘Additional steps’ are to be de ned in the Compose
Construction Stage dialogue box. The tendons can be stressed or the load group for each
tendon could be activated at these de ned additional step time duration.
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As highlighted in the image above, under step (1) de ne the additional steps for time
duration when a particular tendon would be stressed. Under step (2), the tendon’s
prestressed load group is to be activated at the speci ed time step under the Load tab.
Doing so would yield different results as compared to having all the 5 tendons stressed at
the same instance.

6. Pre-stressing force applied at one end or both ends

Jacking force could be applied at both ends or only one end. Providing inappropriate choices
would lead to different prestressing force applications as compared to what is intended and
the results could vary from manual calculations. This option is highlighted in the gure below.
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Besides the above-mentioned reasons, there can be other manual input errors, like incorrect
force value, mistakenly entering ‘Stress’ values when the ‘Force’ option is selected, and so
on. With proper inputs and assumptions, the software results and manual
calculations would greatly be comparable.
 

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About the Author

Yo n g K i K w a k | A s s o c i a te P r o d u c t M a n a g e r | M I D A S I T H Q

YongKi joined MIDAS IT in 2017 and has been working extensively with

midas Civil. As an Associate Product Mananger, he provides customer service

support for midas Civil products as well as educational content for civil

engineers around the world.

 Topics
midas Civil Prestressed Concrete Construction Stage Tips & Tutorials

Precast Concrete Bridges Structural Analysis midas Civil Interface Time Dependent Losses

Software Calculations Elastic Shortening

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