Flexural design, reinforced

There are different techniques that have been used for over a century to increase the modulus of elasticity of plastics. Orientation or the use of fillers and/or reinforcements such as RPs can modify the plastic. There is also the popular and extensively used approach of using geometrical design shapes that makes the best use of materials to improve stiffness even though it has a low modulus. Structural shapes that are applicable to all materials include shells, sandwich structures, and folded plate structures (Fig. 3-8). These widely used shapes employed include other shapes such as dimple sheet surfaces. They improve the flexural stiffness in one or more directions. 

The method of obtaining creep data and their presentation have been described however, their application is limited to the exact same material, temperature use, stress level, atmospheric conditions, and type of test (tensile, compression, flexure) with a tolerance of 10%. Only rarely do product requirement conditions coincide with those of the test or, for that matter, are creep data available for all grades of material that may be selected by a designer. In those cases a creep test of relatively short duration such as 1000 h can be instigated, and the information can be extrapolated to the long-term needs. It should be noted that reinforced thermoplastics and thermosets display much higher resistance to creep (Chapter 2). 

Tensile membrane behavior requires continuous reinforcement steel to support in-plane stesses. Two-way slabs and flat slabs, with fixed or simple supports, can usually satisfy the requirements for tensile membrane resistance. Design with tensile membrane resistance is the same as for flexural resistance since the moment capacity of the section is used to determine ultimate resistance. Tensile membrane resistance at 8 degree rotation must be at least... 

Direct Shear. For type I cross-sections (0 < 2°) the concrete between the flexural reinforcement Is capable of resisting direct shear. However, because cracking at the support yield line reduces the shear capacity, diagonal bars must be provided to at least resist the shear capacity of the concrete, v. For type II and III cross-sections (0 > 2 ), with little or no concrete shear resistance, The diagonal reinforcing bars must be designed to resist the entire shear load at the support. 

The advantages of using reinforced concrete for the design of blast-hardened structures and the important recent changes to the design criteria of flexural elements have been summarized. Detailed design of hardened structures should be in accordance with the criteria in the tri-service design manual, TM 5-1300/NAVFAC P-397/AFM 88-22, "Structures to Resist the Effects of Accidental Explosions". 

Reinforced concrete is a complex material to model due to the brittle nature of concrete and non-homogenous properties. Although sophisticated methods are available to model crack propagation and other responses, simplified methods are normally used in blast design of facilities. These methods are based on a flexural response and rely on elimination of brittle modes of failure. To achieve a ductile response for concrete, proper proportioning and detailing of the reinforcing is necessary. 

The primary failure mechanisms encountered in reinforced concrete buildings arc flexure, diagonal tension, and direct shear. Of these three mechanisms,. flexure is preferred under blast loading because an extended plastic response is provider prior to failure. To assure a ductile response, sections are designed so that the flexural capacity is less than the capacity of non-ductile mechanisms. 

There are other proprietary systems such as polyacrylamate. It is Ashland Chemical s Airmax that is designed for use with preforms or glass mats. These reinforced plastics possess high flexural modulus, good impact resistance, and high temperature stability. Systems with similar performance from isocyanate-based polymers are also used. 

Maalej, M. and Li, V.C. (1995). Introduction of strain-hardening engineered cementitious composites in design of reinforced concrete flexural members for improved durability. ACI Structural Journal, 92(2) 167-176. 

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