BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD.

thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTION Abstract Of The Phd Thesis
Introduction The ferrocement is a special type of reinforced concrete used for thin elements. It is made by cement microconcrete reinforced by continuous mesh layers from small diameter wires. The ferrocement is a building material with evident advantages for thin-walled members and spatial structures for this type of material. For their properties, the ferrocement is recommended to be used for curves and folded thin elements with a rigidity due to the form and not to the quantity of the material. The simultaneous action of bending moment and shear force induces a complex stress state in the elements made of reinforced concrete or of ferrocement. The values of stresses and strains in different states of loading are influenced by a series of parameters, so their exact determination is very difficult. The complexity of all this aspects regarding this combined action was an impediment to have till now a unitary theory regarding the behaviour of ferrocement in serviceability limit state. High shear stresses in a beam determine the formation of inclined cracks versus the axis of the element. Including in the element a transverse reinforcement, called shear reinforcement, does avoiding these cracks. Cracking of ferrocement beams under shear force The inclined cracks in the webs of the reinforced concrete beam may appear in the absence of flexure cracks (normal cracks) or by extinction of previous normal crack [2]. An inclined crack appeared in a beam (uncracked before) as a bending effect is known as web-shear crack, as you can see in figure 1.a .

Fig.1. Types of inclined cracks

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

An inclined crack starting from the top of an existing flexure crack becoming an extinction of this is known as flexure-shear crack, as you can see in figure 1.b. The critical bending crack is called initiating crack. The web shear crack are rarely produced and they appear in I beams with reduced width of the web, or near the inflexion points or interrupting of the reinforcements from continuous beams of reinforced concrete. In the ferrocement members tested by us were produced initiating cracks and bending-shear cracks like in figure 1.b.

Shear transfer After the formation of inclined crack the transfer of shear is produced by a combination of mechanisms (fig.2) as follows: a. shear resistance of the uncracked concrete, VCZ; b. aggregate interlock (or interface shear transfer) force Va, tangentially along a crack and similar to a friction force due to irregular interlocking of the aggregates along the rough concrete surfaces on the each side of the crack; c. dowel effect, Vd, representing the longitudinal reinforcement resistance to a transvers force; d. arch action on relatively deep beams; e. shear reinforcement resistance, VS, in a form of stirrups, inclined reinforcement or a combinations of stirrups and inclined bars. In the case of ferrocement elements the transfer mechanisms a, b, and e are produced. Dowel effect (c mechanisms) is present only if in the element exists an reinforcement from bars skeleton.

Fig. 2. The redistribution of shear resistance after the formation of inclined crack.

The ability of a beam to carry additional load after an inclined crack formation depends if the supported shear by uncracked concrete could be redistributed from one side to the other of the

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

inclined crack. The ad mechanisms, mentioned above take part to the redistribution and assure the shear resistance and the cracking degree. Researches mentioned in [2] showed that in a square cross-section beam of the reinforced concrete without shear reinforcement, after the formation of inclined crack, the part of shear transferred by different mechanisms is as follows: 20-40 % by the uncracked concrete compression zone; 33-50 % by aggregates interlock or interface shear transfer; 15-25 % by dowel effect.

The formation and developing of inclined crack depend by the relative values of shear stresses (v) and flexural stress (ft). These controlling stresses could be evaluated by the expressions:

v = k1

V . bd

(1)

ft = k2 where: k1, k2 are constants of proportionality,

M . bd 2

(2)

b, d the width respectively the effective depth of the section, M, V bending moment and shear force.

It is known that the principal tension stress, governing the bending-shear behaviour of beams, is function of ft/v ratio. (1) and (2) relations could express it thus:

ft k2 M M = = k3 v k1 V d V d

(3)

For the beam from figure 3, the M/V ratio could be imagined as a distance where the shear force is constant. This distance is known as shear span. For the general case when the shear force has a continuous variation, the shear span a = M/V has values in all points along the beam. In this case with relation (3) we obtain:
ft a = k3 ( ) v d

(4)

It results, the ratio between the shear span and effective depth of the section (a/d) represent the principal factor of influence in the establishment of the shear strenght. The influence of this ratio (called the shear span to depth ratio effect) could be established only in experimental way.

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Fig. 3. Definition of shear span - a.

There were tested 16 simply supported beams with I cross-section having 250 mm height and 1 meter span. The variable parameters was the number of reinforcing meshes (3 or 4) and the a/d ratio equal by 0,35..2.12. The cracking state of the experimental elements was observed by a Brinell small microscope with an accuracy of 0,01 mm. The experimental measuring and observation results for one typical beam are given in figure 4 and table 1. It is remarkable that cracks appeared at approximately a half of the breaking load, and their width has not exceed the admitted limit by codes (0,3 mm) untill the imminent failure of the beam. The ferrocement beams tested by us have a satisfactory behaviour in inclined sections, under the main action of shear force. This conclusion, associated with the results of others tests carried out at Cluj-Napoca [1], increase the confidence in the benefit use of ferrocement as a building material.
9000 8000 7000

Load P (kgf)

6000 5000 4000 3000 2000 1000 0 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35

Deflection f [ x 0,1 mm]

Fig.4. One of tested beam (I2b) with 3 mesh (a = 250 mm) a; and resulted P-f diagram b.

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

Table 1. Tests results for one beam

Load [kgf]

Deform ation 0.01mm

Deflection 0.1mm 1

Cracking state [mm/cm] 2 3 4 5

0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500 4000 4500 5000 5500 6000 6500 7000 7500 8000 8300

0 -1 -1 -1.5 -2 -3 -5 -8 -10.5 -22 -28 -32.5 -37.5 -42.5 -64 -98 -130

0 1 2 3 3.5 4 4.5 5 5.5 8 9.5 10.5 12 13 16.5 22 29 Failure 0.5/20 0.7/20 12/20 2/20 2.5/20 3/20 4.5/20 0.9/7 1.7/10.5 1.8/13 2/15.5 2.5/20 1.8/20 -/11 -/14 -/14 -/14 -/14 -/14 -/16 -/18 -/20 0.2/11

Failure of ferrocement member under shear force

The simultaneous action of bending moment and shear force in the ferrocement elements gives a complex state of stress. In the areas of beams in which the flexure moment is available and also the shear forces are working, the equilibrium equations are complicated, being necessary an equilibrium equation for the vertical side. The compatible conditions of deformation must to be modified by the insertion of displacements at shear, and the failure criteria must to consider the bi-axial state and in some situations the three-axial state of stress of the microconcrete.

Possible failure modes

In function of the shear span to depth ratio value a/d (a being the distance from the support to

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

the concentrated load and the effective depth of the section), the behaviour of the simple supported beams, can be illustrated in figure 5.

Fig.5. Shear strength variation with a/d ratio (adopted from [2])

From figure four failure modes may be established: I. II. III. IV. Deep beams (wall beams) with a/d 1, Short beams with 1 < a/d 2 , Intermediate length (usual) beams with 2 , < a/d 6, Long beams with a/d > 6.

Fig.6. Failure modes in deep beams

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

In deep beams shear stress has the predominant effect. After the inclined cracks occurs, the simple supported beam tends to have a behaviour similar with an tied-arch in which the load is carried by the compressed concrete and the longitudinal reinforcement which present a considerable energy capacity (fig. 6.a). Possible failure modes are illustrated in figure (6.b).
Short beams - (1 a/d 2 ) have a shear strength deeper than the shear strength that

exceeds the inclined cracking strength. After developing of flexure-shear cracks, the cracks extend into the compression area as the load increases. Also, secondary cracks are spread toward the tension reinforcement, progressing horizontally along the reinforcement. The failure can occurs by an anchorage failure at the tension reinforcement, called a shear-tension failure (fig. 7.a), or by concrete crush near the compressed face, called a shear-compression failure (fig. 7.b).

Fig. 7. Typical failure to the shear of short beams In intermediate length beams (2 < a/d 6), first, the vertical cracks are formed, followed by inclined flexure-shear cracks, formatting some segments between cracks with teeth form (fig.8)

Fig. 8. Diagonal tension failure in useful beams

When tooth root is reduced by the formation of new flexural cracks and it is not capable to resist to the produced moment by T, the most solicited tooth is broken. Instantly an inclined

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________

flexure-shear appears, coinciding with the touching of the flexure-shear strength of the beam, because the beam is not capable to redistribute loads (as it was in beams with reduced a/d ratio). The failure of long beams (with a/d > 6) starts by the yielding of the tension reinforcement and ends by crushing of the concrete in the section of maximum bending moment. Besides vertical cracks in the failure section, easy inclined cracks may appeared between support and the most bent section. Anyway the beam strength is not affected by the value of the shear force. Concluding, to all types of beams, excepting the deep beams, the shear strength is considered to be touched when appear the inclined crack. In the ferrocement beams bond between matrix and reinforcement is very good, due to the small diameter of reinforcements and to the reduced distance between fibbers. So, there are not anchorage failure. The elements tested by authors was broken in inclined sections by yielding of the reinforcement crossing the critical inclined crack, followed by the concrete crush at the upper extremity of crack (fig. 3b). The strength value forming an inclined crack is considered to be the shear strength of a beam without shear reinforcement (VC). The relation to establish this value, deduced by a numerous number of tests, is given by codes.

The influence of the shear span to depth ratio a/d

Tests on simple supported 16 beams, having I cross-section, with 250 mm deep and 1000 mm span, justify to following conclusions: 1. The failure of the ferrocement beams is produced by the yielding of the reinforcement crossing the inclined critical crack, followed by the crush of the concrete on the superior extremity of the crack (fig.3.b) 2. For the beams with ratio a/d > 2 the failure is done by the beam mechanism, the influence of shear force being not significant. 3. For the beams with ratio 0,5 a/d 2 the failure is produced at so higher values of the shear force as the ratio a/d is reduced. 4. The a/d ratio effect to the shear strength of the members was established by processing of experimental results, using the smallest squares method. It was obtained the expression of function
a Vr = f ( ), given by the relation: bw d d

Vr a a = 3,69 0,591 + 0,02723 bw d d d and represented in figure 9.

BEHAVIOUR AND ANALYSIS OF FERROCEMENT BEAMS IN INCLINED SECTIONS Abstract of PhD. thesis _____________________________________________________________________________________________
14.00

12.00

10.00

V /(bw d)

8.00

6.00

4.00

2.00

0.00 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5

a/d

Fig. 9. The shear span to depth ratio effect on shear strength.

The ferrocement beams subjected to the simultaneous action of bending moment and shear force had a good behaviour under increasing loads untill the failure. Their failure followed a ductile manner consisting into the yielding of the transvers reinforcement followed by the crushing of the compressed concrete.

Original contributions of the auhtor:

1. Documentary synthesis regarding the physical and mechanical properties of ferrocement as building material. 2. Critical study of the analysis methods of ferrocement, focused on the ultimate limit state in inclined sections. 3. Experimental programme to test 16 simply supported beams with I cross-section subjected to bending with the predominant shearing force. 4. Establishing of an analysis procedure to amend the EC2 methods in order to apply to the ferrocement members analysis in inclined sections. 5. Establishing of function

Vr x = f ( ) necessary to correct the method prescribed in bw d d

calculus. The equation were deduced by processing of experimental results, using the smallest squares method. 6. Emphasising the satisfactory behaviour of the ferrocement in inclined section, when it is solicited until failure. These conclusions loaded active failure associated with the results of other researches carried out at Cluj-Napoca consolidate the thrust in benefice use of ferrocement as building material.