Interrelation of Splitting and Flexural Cracks in RC Beams
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 124, Issue 9
Abstract
The durability of reinforced concrete (RC) structures depends mainly on concrete permeability that allows the aggressive agents to reach the reinforcement and to start corrosion. In addition to the permeability connected to porosity and microcracking, another important and well-known cause of degradation is concrete cracking that directly exposes the reinforcement to aggressive agents. Besides flexural cracks, other kinds of cracks can occur in RC beams, of which splitting cracks have particular relevance. They develop longitudinally along the anchored bar and expose a large area of the bar to the environment so that the corrosion resistance to splitting cracks should be lower than the resistance to flexural cracks. To study the structure durability related to splitting cracks, two aspects should be considered: (1) The resistance to corrosion for a given splitting crack opening; and (2) the evaluation of the splitting crack width. To shed some new light on the second aspect, in this paper a relationship between the maximum splitting crack opening and the flexural crack opening is proposed and contrasted with experimental results. Furthermore, an approximated relationship, for practical use, is determined.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
References
1.
Balaguru, P., Gambarova, P. G., Rosati, G. P., and Schumm, C. E. (1995). “Bond of reinforcing bars and prestressing tendons in HPFRC matrices.”Proc., 2nd Int. Workshop: High-Performance Fiber Reinforced Composites, A. E. Naaman and H. W. Reinhardt, eds., Vol. 2, Univ. of Michigan, Dept. of Civ. and Envir. Engrg., Ann Arbor, Mich., 325–363.
2.
Bažant, Z. P., and Oh, B. H.(1983). “Spacing of cracks in reinforced concrete.”J. Struct. Engrg., ASCE, 109(9), 2066–2085.
3.
Beeby, A. W. (1971). “Prediction and control of flexural cracking in reinforced concrete members.”Cracking, Deflection and Ultimate Load of Concrete Slab Systems, Spec. Publ. 30, Am. Concrete Inst., Detroit, Mich., 55–75.
4.
Clark, A. P.(1956). “Cracking in reinforced concrete flexural members.”ACI J., 52(8), 851–862.
5.
Eligehausen, R., Bertero, V. V., and Popov, E. P. (1983). “Local bond stress-slip relationships of deformed bars under generalized excitations: Tests and analytical model.”Tech. Rep. No. UCB/EERC-83, Earthquake Engrg. Res. Ctr., Univ. of California, Berkeley, Calif.
6.
Eurocode No. 2. (1991). Design of concrete structures. Part 1: General rules and rules for buildings, Commission of the Eur. Communities.
7.
Gambarova, P. G., and Karakoç, C. (1982). “Shear-confinement interaction at the bar-to-concrete interface.”Bond in concrete, P. Bartos, ed., Applied Science Publishers, London, England, 82–98.
8.
Gambarova, P. G., and Rosati, G. P.(1997). “Bond and splitting in bar pull-out: Behavioral laws and concrete cover role.”Mag. of Concrete Res., 49(179), 99–110.
9.
Gambarova, P. G., Rosati, G. P., and Zasso, B.(1989). “Steel-to-concrete bond after splitting: Test rules.”Mat. and Struct., Paris, France, 22, 35–47.
10.
Giuriani, E. (1982). “On the effective axial stiffness of a bar in cracked concrete.”Bond in concrete, P. Bartos, ed., Applied Science Publishers, London, England, 107–126.
11.
Giuriani, E., and Plizzari, G. A.(1985). “Local bond-slip law after splitting of concrete.”Studi e Ricerche, School for the Des. of Reinforced Concrete Structures, Milan Univ. of Technol., Milan, Italy, 7, 57–118.
12.
Giuriani, E., and Plizzari, G. A. (1996). “Splitting crack control in R.C. beams.”Tech. Rep. No. 5/96, Dept. of Civ. Engrg., Univ. of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
13.
Giuriani, E., Plizzari, G. A., and Schumm, C.(1991). “Role of stirrups and residual tensile strength of cracked concrete on bond.”J. Struct. Engrg., ASCE, 117(1), 1–18.
14.
Giuriani, E., and Rosati, G. P.(1987). “An analytical model for the study of crack propagation in plain concrete elements under bending.”Studi e Ricerche, School for the Des. of Reinforced Concrete Structures, Milan Univ. of Technol., Milan, Italy, 9, 107–127.
15.
Maeda, M., Otani, S., and Aoyama, H.(1995). “Effect of confinement on bond splitting behavior in reinforced concrete beams.”Struct. Engrg. Int., IABSE, 5(3), 166–171.
16.
Nawy, E. G.(1968). “Crack control in reinforced concrete structures.”ACI J., 65(10), 825–836.
17.
Neville, A.(1983). “Corrosion in reinforcement.”Concrete, 17, 48–50.
18.
Plizzari, G. A., Deldossi, A. M., and Massimo, S.(1996b). “Experimental study on anchored bars in RC elements with transverse reinforcement.”Mat. and Struct., RILEM, Paris, France, 29, 534–542.
19.
Plizzari, G. A., Deldossi, A. M., and Massimo, S.(1998). “Transverse reinforcement effects on anchored deformed bars.”Mag. of Concrete Res., 50(2), 161–177.
20.
Plizzari, G. A., Marchina, E., and Giuriani, E.(1996a). “Experimental study of splitting and flexural cracks in a RC beam with overlapped splices.”Mat. and Struct., RILEM, Paris, France, 29, 19–27.
21.
Plizzari, G. A., Schumm, C., and Giuriani, E.(1987). “The effect of residual tensile strength of cracked concrete on the local bond-slip law after splitting.”Studi e Ricerche, School for the Des. of Reinforced Concrete Struct., Milan Univ. of Technol., Milan, Italy, 9, 129–155.
22.
Reinhardt, H. W., and Van der Veen, C. (1990). “Splitting failure of a strain-softening material due to bond stresses.”Applications of fracture mechanics to reinforced concrete, A. Carpinteri, ed., Elsevier Applied Science, New York, N.Y., 333–346.
23.
Tepfers, R. (1973). “A theory of bond applied to overlapped tensile reinforcement splices for deformed bars,” PhD thesis, Chalmers Univ. of Technol., Goteborg, Sweden.
24.
Tremper, B.(1947). “The corrosion of reinforcing steel in cracked concrete.”ACI J., 43(10), 1137–1144.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 124 • Issue 9 • September 1998
Pages: 1032 - 1049
Copyright
Copyright © 1998 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Sep 1, 1998
Published in print: Sep 1998
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.