COMPRESSION STRENGTH OF CONCRETE

The strength of concrete varies with time. The specified compression strength denoted as fc ′ is
the value that concrete attains 28 days after the placement. Beyond that stage, the increase in
strength is very small. The strength fc ′ ranges from 2500 to 9000 psi with a common value
between 3000 and 5000 psi.

The stress–strain diagram of concrete is not linear to any appreciable extent; thus, concrete does
not behave elastically over a major range. Moreover, concrete of different strengths have stress–
strain curves that have different slopes. Therefore, in concrete, the modulus of elasticity cannot
be ascertained directly from a stress–strain diagram.

The American Concrete Institute (ACI), which is a primary agency in the United States that
prepares the national standards for structural concrete, provides the empirical relations for the
modulus of elasticity based on the compression strength, fc ′. Although the stress–strain curves
have different slopes for concrete of different strengths, the following two characteristics are
common to all concretes:

1. The maximum compression strength, fc ′, in all concrete is attained at a strain level of

approximately 0.002 in./in.

2. The point of rupture of all curves lies in the strain range of 0.003–0.004 in./in. Thus, it is
assumed that concrete fails at a strain level of 0.003 in./in (4)

STRENGTH OF REINFORCING STEEL

The steel bars used for reinforcing are round, deformed bars with some form of patterned ribbed
projections onto their surfaces. The bar sizes are designated from #3 through #18. For #3 to #8
sizes, the designation represents the bar diameter in one-eighths of an inch, that is, the #5 bar
has a diameter of 5/8 in. The #9, #10, and #11 sizes have diameters that provide areas equal to
the areas of the 1 in. × 1 in. square bar, 11 8 in. × 11 8 in. square bar, and 11 4 in. × 11 4 in.
square bar, respectively. Sizes #14 and #18 are available only by special order. They have
diameters equal to the areas of a 11 2 in. ×11 2 in. square bar and 2 in. × 2 in. square bar,
respectively. The diameter, area, and unit weight per foot for various sizes of bars are given in
Appendix D, Table D.1.

The most useful properties of reinforcing steel are the yield stress, fy and the modulus of
elasticity, E. A large percentage of reinforcing steel bars is not made from new steel but is rolled
from melted, reclaimed steel. These are available in different grades. Grade 40, Grade 50, and
Grade 60 are common, where Grade 40 means the steel having a yield stress of 40 ksi and so on.
The modulus of elasticity of reinforcing steel of different grades varies over a very small range. It
is adopted as 29,000 ksi for all grades of steel.

Concrete structures are composed of the beams, columns, or column–beam types of structures
where they are subjected to flexure, compression, or the combination of flexure and
compression.
DESIGN STRENGTH OF CONCRETE

To understand the development and distribution of stress in concrete, let us consider a simple
rectangular beam section with steel bars at the bottom (in the tensile zone), which is loaded by
an increasing transverse load.

The tensile strength of concrete being small, the concrete will soon crack at the bottom at a low
transverse load. The stress at this level is known as the modulus of rupture, and the bending
moment is referred to as the cracking moment. Beyond this level, the tensile stress will be
handled by the steel bars and the compression stress by the concrete section above the neutral
axis. Concrete being a brittle (not a ductile) material, the distribution of stress within the
compression zone could be considered linear only up to a moderate load level when the stress
attained by concrete is less than 1/2 fc ′, as shown in Figure 14.1. In this case, the stress and
strain bear a direct proportional relationship.(3)

As the transverse load increases further, the strain distribution will remain linear (Figure 14.2b)
but the stress distribution will acquire a curvilinear shape similar to the shape of the stress–
strain curve. As the steel bars reach the yield level, the distribution of strain and stress at this
load will be as shown in Figure 14.2b and c.