Flexural Strength Design Criteria for Concrete Beams Reinforced with High-Strength Steel Strands

Abstract

This paper summarizes the result of a study investigating the flexural behavior of concrete beams reinforced with high-strength prestressing strands. Thirteen concrete beams reinforced with either conventional reinforcing bars or high-strength strands were fabricated and load tested in the experimental part of the study. No distinct difference was detected between the experimentally obtained cracking patterns of the two groups of beams. For the same reinforcement amount, beams reinforced with high-strength strands exhibited slightly smaller service stiffness than those reinforced with conventional reinforcing bars. A comparison of the measured and numerically predicted response of beam specimens indicated that the cracking load, peak load, and the deformation capacity of concrete beams can be accurately determined by a sectional analysis procedure for both types of reinforcement. The level of ductility present in concrete beams reinforced with high-strength strands is evaluated using the parameter called “displacement deformability ratio.” Using the numerically determined maximum reinforcement limits for concrete beams reinforced with high-strength strands, an expression was proposed to be used at the design stage.