Deflection

clause 3.4.6, BS8110

• In addition to checking that failure of the member does not
arise due to the limit states of bending and shear, the
designer must ensure that the deflection under working loads
dot not adversely affect either the efficiency or appearance of
the structure.
• Bs 8110 describe the following criteria for ensuring the proper
performance of rectangular beams:
– Final deflection should not exceed span/250
– Deflection after construction of finishes and partitions should not
exceed span/500 or 20mm, whichever is the lesser, for the span up to
10m.
• It is rather difficult to make accurate predictions of the
deflections that may arise in concrete members principally
because the member may be cracked under working loads
and the degree of restraint at the supports is uncertain.
• Therefore, BS8110 uses an approximate method based on
permissible ratios of the span/effective depth.
WHAT IS MEANT BY THE EFFECTIVE
SPAN OF A BEAM?
 Effective span (clause 3.4.1.2,BS 8110)
• All the calculation relating to beam design should be based on the
effective span of the beam.
• For a simply supported beam, this should be taken as the lesser
of :-
– (1) the distance between centers of bearings, A, or
– (2) the clear distance between supports, D, plus the effective depth, d, of the
beam.
• For a continuous beam, the effective span should normally be
taken as the distance between the centers of support.

A
 Span/effective depth ratio
• The deflection criteria in:-
– Final deflection should not exceed span/250
– Deflection after construction of finishes and partitions should not
exceed span/500 or 20mm, whichever is the lesser, for the span up to
10m.
• Will be satisfied provided that the span/effective depth ratio
of the beam does not exceed the appropriate limiting value
given in table 3.9, BS 8110
• The span / effective depth ratio given in the table apply to
spans up to 10m long. When the span exceed 10m, these
ratios should be multiplied by 10/span (except for cantilevers).
 Sizing of a initial concrete beam
• The dual concept of span/effective depth ratios and maximum design
concrete shear stress can be used not only to assess the performance of
members with respect to deflection and shear but gives modified
span/effective depth ratios for estimating the effective depth of a concrete
beam, provided that the span is known.
• The width of the beam then, can be determined by limiting the maximum
design shear stress to around (say) 1.2 N/mm².

Support Condition Span/effective depth

Cantilever 6
Simply Supported 12
Continous 15

Table: Span/effective depth ratios for initial design

 Example
• A simply supported beam has an effective span of 8m and supports
characteristic dead load (gk) and live load (Qk) of 15kN/m and 10 kN/m
respectively. Determine the suitable dimension for the effective depth and
width of the beam. Qk =10kN/m

Gk =15kN/m

8m
Span/effective depth ratio for a simply supported beam is 12. hence,
effective depth, d,is:

D =span /12 =8000/12 =670mm

Total ultimate load =(1.4gk +1.6 qk) x span =296 kN

Design shear force (V) =296/2 =148kN and design shear stress, v:-
V =V/bd =(148 x 10³)/670b

Assuming v is equal to (say) 1.2 N/mm², gives width of beam,b, of

B =V/dv = (148 x 10³)/670 x 1.2 = 185mm

Hence, a beam of width 185mm and effective depth 670 mm would be

suitable to support the given design load
CALCULATION OF ACTUAL DEFLECTION

• Actual span / effective depth ratio

 Permissible Deflection
• STEP 1 –Find the design service stress in tension
reinforcement ( fs )
Fs = (2/3) x fy x (As,req / As,prov)

• STEP 2 – Modification Factors

477 - fs
Modification factors = 0.55 + ≤ 2.0
120 0.9 + M
bd²
• STEP 3
Modification factors x permissible span effective depth ratio

Table 3.9, BS 8110 – Basic span / effective depth ratio for rectangular or flanged
beams.
Support Conditions Rectangular conditions Flanged beams with
Width of beam ≤ 0.3
Width of flange

Cantilever 7 5.6
Simply supported 20 16.0
Continuous 26 20.8