Size Effect in Torsional Failure of Concrete Beams
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 113, Issue 10
Abstract
The paper examines whether the size effect law for failures due to distributed cracking, recently derived from fracture mechanics arguments, is applicable to torsional failure of unreinforced or longitudinally reinforced concrete beams of rectangular cross section without stirrups. The test data available in the literature are used for this purpose. They confirm that a size effect is present and does not disagree with the size effect law. However, the data range is so narrow and their scatter so large that the precise form of the size effect cannot be identified. A simple, theoretically based formula to take the size effect into account is suggested.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Andersen, P., “Rectangular Concrete Sections under Torsion,” ACI Journal, Vol. 34, No. 1, Sept.–Oct., 1937, pp. 1–11.
2.
Bach, B., and Graf, O., “Versuche über die Widerstandsfähigkeit von Beton und Eisenbeton gagen Verdrehung (Investigation of Torsional Strength of Concrete and Reinforced Concrete),” Deutscher Ausschuss für Eisenbeton, Heft 16, Wilhelm Ernst, Berlin, Germany, 1912.
3.
Bažant, Z. P., “Size Effect in Blunt Fracture: Concrete, Rock, Metal,” Journal of Engineering Mechanics, ASCE, Vol. 110, Apr., 1984, pp. 518–535.
4.
Bažant, Z. P., “Mechanics of Fracture and Progressive Cracking in Concrete Structures,” Fracture Mechanics Applied to Engineering Problems, Chap. 1, G. C. Sih and A. DiTomasso, eds., Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, The Hague, Netherlands, 1984, pp. 1–94.
5.
Bažant, Z. P., “Mechanics of Distributed Cracking,” ASME Applied Mechanics Reviews, Vol. 39, No. 5, 1986, pp. 675–705.
6.
Bažant, Z. P., “Fracture Mechanics and Strain‐Softening of Concrete,” Proceedings, U.S. Japan Seminar on Finite Element Analysis of Reinforced Concrete, May, 1985, Japan Concrete Institute, Tokyo, Japan, (published by ASCE, C. Meyer and H. Okamura eds., New York, N.Y., pp. 25–47).
7.
Bažant, Z. P., “Fracture in Concrete and Reinforced Concrete,” Mechanics of Geomaterials: Rocks, Concretes, Soils, Chap. 13, Z. P. Bažant, ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, N.Y., 1985, pp. 259–304.
8.
Bažant, Z. P., “Fracture Energy of Heterogeneous Material and Similitude,” Preprints, June 1987 SEM‐RILEM International Conference on Fracture of Concrete and Rock, held at Houston, Texas, S. P. Shah and S. Swartz, eds., Society for Experimental Mechanics, pp. 390–402.
9.
Bažant, Z. P., and Cao, Z., “Size Effect in Shear Failure of Prestressed Concrete Beams,” ACI Journal, Vol. 83, No. 2, March–April, 1986, pp. 260–268.
10.
Bažant, Z. P., and Cao, Z., “Size Effect in Brittle Failure of Unreinforced Pipes,” ACI Journal, Vol. 83, No. 3, May–June, 1986, pp. 369–373.
11.
Bažant, Z. P., and Cao, Z., “Size Effect in Punching Shear Failure of Slabs,” ACI Structural Journal, Vol. 84, Jan.–Feb., 1987, pp. 44–53.
12.
Bažant, Z. P., and Kim, J. K., “Size Effect in Shear Failure of Reinforced Concrete Beams,” ACI Journal, Vol. 81, Sept., 1984, pp. 456–468,
with discussion by K. D. Chin, Vol. 82, July, 1985, pp. 579–583.
13.
Bažant, Z. P., and Sener, S., “Effect of Aggregate Size in Shear Failure of Reinforced Concrete Beams,” Internal Report, Center for Concrete & Geomaterials, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., May, 1985 (used as basis for discussion closure of Ref. 12).
14.
“Commentary on Building Code Requirements for Reinforced Concrete (ACI 318M‐83),” ACI Standard, ACI, June, 1984.
15.
Cowan, H. J., “Tests of Torsional Strength and Deformation of Rectangular Reinforced Concrete Beams,” Concrete and Constructional Engineering, Vol. 46, No. 2, London, U.K., 1951, pp. 51–59.
16.
Cowan, H. J., and Armstrong, S., “Experiments on the Strength of Reinforced and Prestressed Concrete Beams and of Concrete‐Encased Steel Joints in Combined Bending and Torsion,” Magazine of Concrete Research, Vol. 6, No. 19, 1955, pp. 3–20.
17.
Ernest, G. C., “Ultimate Torsional Properties of Rectangular Reinforced Concrete Beams,” ACI Journal, Vol. 29, No. 4, 1957, pp. 341–356.
18.
Hsu, T. T. C., “Torsion of Structural Concrete‐Plain Concrete Rectangular Sections,” Torsion of Structural Concrete (SP‐18), American Concrete Institute, Detroit, Mich., 1968, pp. 203–238.
19.
Hsu, T. T. C., Torsion of Reinforced Concrete, Van Nostrand Reinhold Co., New York, N.Y., 1984, 516 pages.
20.
Humphreys, R., “Torsional Properties of Prestressed Concrete,” Structural Engineer, Vol. 35, No. 6, London, U.K., 1957, pp. 213–224.
21.
Kemp, E. L., Sozen, M. A., and Siess, C. P., “Torsion in Reinforced Concrete,” Report No. 226, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champain, Sept., 1961.
22.
Marshall, W. T., and Tempe, N. R., “Experiments on Plain and Reinforced Concrete in Torsion,” Structural Engineer, Vol. 19, No. 11, London, U.K., 1941, pp. 177–191.
23.
McMullen, A. E., and Daniel, H. R., “Torsional Strength of Longitudinally Reinforced Beams Containing an Opening,” ACI Journal, Vol. 72, No. 8, 1975, pp. 415–420.
24.
Mukherjee, P. R., “Ultimate Torsional Strength of Plain, Prestressed and Reinforced Concrete Members of Rectangular Cross‐Section,” thesis presented to West Virginia University, at Morgantown, W. Va., in 1967, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
25.
Mukherjee, S. K., “Torsional Strength and Stiffness of Rectangular Plain and Reinforced Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Members,” thesis presented to West Virginia University, at Morgantown, W. Va., in 1972, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.
26.
Neville, A. M., Properties of Concrete, 2nd ed., John Wiley & Sons, New York, N.Y., 1973, 686 pages.
27.
Park, P., and Paulay, T., Reinforced Concrete Structures, John Wiley & Sons, New York, N.Y., 1975, 769 pages.
28.
Sundra, K. T., Iyengar, R., and Rangan, B. V., “Strength and Stiffness of Reinforced Concrete Beams under Combined Bending and Torsion,” Torsion of Structural Concrete (SP‐18), American Concrete Institute, Detroit, Mich., 1968, pp. 403–440.
29.
Turner, L., and Davies, V. C., “Plain and Reinforced Concrete in Torsion, with Particular Reference to Reinforced Concrete Beams,” Institution of Civil Engineers, London, U.K. (Selected Engineering Papers No. 165).
30.
Victor, D. J., “Effective Flange Width in Torsion,” ACI Journal, Vol. 68, No. 1, 1971, pp. 42–46.
31.
Victor, D. J., and Muthukrishnan, R., “Effect of Stirrups on Ultimate Torque of Reinforced Concrete Beams,” ACI Journal, Vol. 70, No. 4, Apr., 1973, pp. 300–306.
32.
Young, C. R., Sagar, W. L., and Hughes, C. A., “Torsional Strength of Rectangular Sections of Concrete, Plain and Reinforced,” Bulletin No. 9, School of Engineering, University of Toronto, 1922.
33.
Youssef, M. A. R., and Bishara, A. G., “Dowel Action in Concrete Beams Subject to Torsion,” Journal of the Structural Division, ASCE, Vol. 106, No. 6, 1980, pp. 1263–1277.
34.
Zia, P., “Torsional Strength of Concrete Members,” ACI Journal, Vol. 57, No. 58, 1961, pp. 1337–1359.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 113 • Issue 10 • October 1987
Pages: 2125 - 2136
Copyright
Copyright © 1987 ASCE.
History
Published online: Oct 1, 1987
Published in print: Oct 1987
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.