12/06/2019 Steel, Wood and Concrete: A comparison | SkyCiv Cloud Structural Analysis Software

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Steel, Wood and Concrete: A comparison Password

February 13, 2019 Sam Carigliano No Comments Technical Select Profession

What materials are most commonly used in structural Company, University or School Na

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Structural engineering depends on the knowledge of materials and their
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corresponding properties for us to better predict the behavior of di erent materials
when applied to the structure. Generally, the three (3) most commonly used
construction materials are steel, concrete and wood/timber. Knowing the
advantages and disadvantages of every material is important in ensuring a safe and

cost-e ective approach to designing structures.

Structural Steel
Steel is an alloy consisting mainly of iron and carbon. Other elements are also mixed
into the alloy to gain other properties. One example is the addition of chromium and
nickel to create stainless steel. Increasing the carbon in steel has the intended e ect
of increasing the tensile strength of the material. Increasing the carbon content

makes the steel more brittle, which is undesirable for structural steel.

Advantages
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1. Steel has a high strength/weight ratio. Thus, the dead weight of steel structures
is relatively small. This property makes steel a very attractive structural material

for high-rise buildings, long-span bridges, structures located on ground with low
soil bearing and in areas with high seismic activity.
2. Ductility. Steel can undergo large plastic deformation before failure, thus
providing large reserve strength.
3. Predictable material properties. Properties of steel can be predicted with a high

degree of certainty. Steel in fact shows elastic behavior up to a relatively high

and usually well-de ned stress level. In contrast to reinforced concrete, steel
properties do not change considerably with time.
4. Speed of erection. Steel members are simply installed to the structure, making
for a very short construction time. This normally results in quicker economic

payo in areas such as labor costs.

5. Ease of repair. Steel structures in general can be repaired quickly and easily.
6. Adaptation of prefabrication. Steel is highly suitable for prefabrication and mass

production.
7. Repetitive use. Steel can be reused after a structure is disassembled.
8. Expanding existing structures. Steel buildings can be easily expanded by adding
new bays or wings. Steel bridges may be widened.
9. Fatigue strength. Steel structures have relatively good fatigue strength.

Disadvantages

1. General cost. Steel is very energy intensive and naturally more expensive to
produce. Steel structures may be more costly to build than other types of
structures.
2. Fireproo ng. The strength of steel is reduced substantially when heated at
temperatures commonly observed in building res. Steel also conducts and

transmits heat from a burning portion of the building quite fast. Consequently,
steel frames in buildings must have adequate reproo ng.
3. Maintenance. Steel exposed to the environment can damage the material and
even contaminate the structure through corrosion. Steel structures exposed to
air and water, such as bridges and towers, are painted regularly. Application of
weathering and corrosion-resistant steels may eliminate this problem.
4. Susceptibility to buckling. Due to high strength/weight ratio, steel compression
members are, in general, more slender and consequently more susceptible to
buckling than, say, reinforced concrete compression members. As a result, more

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design considerations are needed to improve the buckling resistance of slender

steel compression members.

Figure 1. Structural Steelwork Overview

Reinforced Concrete
Concrete is a mixture of water, cement and aggregates. The proportion of the three
main components is important so as to create a concrete mix of desired
compressive strength. When reinforcing steel bars are added into concrete, the two
materials work together with concrete providing the compressive strength and steel

providing the tensile strength.

Advantages

1. Compressive strength. Reinforced concrete has a high compressive strength

compared to other building materials.
2. Tensile strength. Due to the provided reinforcement, reinforced concrete can
also withstand a good amount tensile stress.
3. Fire resistance. Concrete has a good ability to protect reinforcing steel bars
from re for extended periods. This buys time for the reinforcing bars until the
re is extinguished.

4. Locally sourced materials. Most materials required to produce concrete are

easily sourced locally, which makes concrete a popular and cost-e ective choice.

5. Durability. The reinforced concrete building system is more durable than any
other building system.

6. Moldability. Reinforced concrete, as a uid material in the beginning, can be

economically molded into a nearly limitless range of shapes.

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7. Low maintenance. Reinforced concrete is designed to be rugged, using low

value materials such as sand and water that do not require extensive
maintenance. The concrete is meant to enclose the rebar entirely such that the

rebar is undisturbed. This makes the cost of maintenance for reinforced

concrete structures very low.

8. In structure like footings, dams, piers etc. reinforced concrete is the most

economical construction material.

9. Rigidity. It acts like a rigid member with minimum de ection. A minimal

de ection is good for the serviceability of buildings.

10. User-friendliness. Compared to the use of steel in structure, less skilled labor

can be used in the construction of reinforced concrete structures.

Disadvantages

1. Long-term Storage. Concrete cannot be stored once it is mixed as the cement

reacts with water and the mixture hardens. Its main ingredients have to be
stored separately.

2. Curing time. Concrete has a thirty day curing period. This factor a ects greatly in

the construction schedule of the building. This makes the speed of erection of
cast-in-place concrete slower than steel, however, this can be improved greatly

with the use of precast concrete.

3. Cost of forms. The cost of the forms used for casting RC is relatively higher.

4. Greater cross-section. For a multi-storied building the reinforced concrete

column section (RCC) is larger than steel section as the compressive strength is

lower in the case of RCC.

5. Shrinkage. Shrinkage causes crack development and strength loss.

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Figure 2. A typical example of a Reinforced Concrete

Timber
Wood is an organic, hygroscopic and anisotropic material. Its thermal, acoustic,

electrical, mechanical, aesthetic, working, etc. properties are very suitable to use it is
possible to build a comfortable house using only wooden products. With other

materials, it is almost impossible. Wood is obviously both a common and a historical

choice as a structural engineering material. However, in the past few decades,

there has been a move away from wood in favor of engineered products or metals

like aluminum.

Advantages

1. Tensile strength. For being a relatively lightweight building material, wood

outperforms even steel when it comes to breaking length (or self-support

length). Simply put, it can support its own weight better, which allows for larger

spaces and fewer necessary supports in some building designs.

2. Electrical and heat resistance. It has a natural resistance to electrical conduction

when dried to standard moisture content (MC) levels, usually between 7%-12%
for most wood species. Its strength and dimensions are also not signi cantly

a ected by heat, providing stability to the nished building and even safety
implications for certain re situations.

3. Sound absorption. Its acoustic properties make it ideal for minimizing echo in

living or o ce spaces. Wood absorbs sound, rather than re ecting or amplifying

it, and can help signi cantly reduce noise levels for additional comfort.

4. Locally sourced. Wood is a building material that can be grown and re-grown
through natural processes and also through replanting and forestry

management programs. Select harvesting and other practices allow growth to

continue while larger trees are harvested.

5. Environmentally-friendly. One of the biggest challenges of many building

materials, including concrete, metal, and plastics, is that when they are

discarded, they take an impossibly long time to decompose. When exposed to

natural climate conditions, wood will break down much more quickly and actually
replenish the soil in the process.

Disadvantages

Shrinkage and swelling of wood is one its main disadvantage.

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Wood is a hygroscopic material. This means that it will absorb surrounding

condensable vapors and loses moisture to air below the ber saturation point.
Another disadvantage is its deterioration. The agents causing the deterioration and

destruction of wood fall into two categories: Biotic (biological) and abiotic (non-
biological). Biotic agents include decay and mold fungi, bacteria and insects. Abiotic

agents include sun, wind, water, certain chemicals and re.

Figure 3. A timber/wooden structural frame

Summary
To better describe steel, concrete and wood. Let us summarize their major

characteristics that would highlight each material.

Steel is very strong in both tension and compression and therefore has high

compressive and tensile strengths. Steel has an ultimate strength of about 400 to
500 MPa (58 – 72.5 ksi). It is also a ductile material that yields or de ects before

failure. Steel stands out for its speed and e ciency in construction. Its relative light

weight and ease of construction allows for a workforce about 10 to 20% smaller

compared to a similar concrete-based structure being built. Steel structures also

have excellent durability.

Concrete is extremely strong in compression and therefore has high compressive

strength of about 17MPa to 28MPa. With higher strengths up to or exceeding 70

MPa. Concrete makes it possible to design very robust and durable buildings, and

taking advantage of its thermal mass by keeping it inside the building envelope can
help regulate interior temperatures. There is also an increasing use of precast

concrete in the building industry, which o ers advantages in terms of environmental

impact, cost and speed of construction.

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Wood is resistant to electrical currents, making it an optimal material for electrical

insulation. Tensile strength is also one of the main reasons for choosing timber as a

building material; its remarkably strong qualities make it the perfect choice for

heavy-duty building materials such as structural beams. Wood is much lighter by

volume than both concrete and steel, it is easy to work with and very adaptable on
site. It is durable, results in less thermal bridging than its counterparts and easily

incorporates prefabricated elements. Its structural performance is very high and its

compressive strength is similar to that of concrete. Despite all these, timber is used

more widely for residential and low-rise structures. It is rarely used as the main
material for highrise structures.

These are the most common construction materials used for building. Each material

has its own unique set of bene ts and drawbacks. Eventually these may be

superceded by materials that have very little to no limitations with the technological

advancements in the future. Regardless, our current building materials will remain
relevant for many decades to come.

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