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CIVE 414
STRUCTURAL CONCRETE DESIGN
COURSE NOTES
Course Instructor:
Professor Marianna Polak, Ph.D., P.Eng.
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario, CANADA
Spring 2022
1
This document contains information compiled by: Professors
M.A. Polak, S. Walbridge, K. Soudki and J. West for the pur-
pose of instructing the CIVE 414 – Structural Concrete De-
sign Course at the University of Waterloo. The purpose of
this document is to summarize the key points in the various
subject areas. For more information, the student is encour-
aged to examine other references, including the main course
references and other articles and books on structural con-
crete design.
Assistance with the preparation of this document, provided
by A. Miller, D. Amborst, C. Van Niejenhuis and G. Milligan is
gratefully acknowledged.
These notes represent the authors’ lecture material for a one-term
Civil Engineering undergraduate course covering the introduction to
analysis and design of reinforced concrete elements. It is expected
that the students taking this course will have a background in stat-
ics, solid mechanics and structural analysis.
The notes are divided into seven parts. Each part has an independ-
ent page numbering scheme.
While the notes are fairly complete, they represent an overview or
introduction to each of the subject areas. The student is encouraged
to supplement the notes with additional reading from the references
listed and using textbooks on the subjects of structural concrete de-
sign.
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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Main course references:
Lecture Notes posted on LEARN
“Concrete Design Handbook: 3rd Ed.”, Cement Asso-
ciation of Canada (CAC), 2019
o includes the following code:
“CSA A23.3-19: Design of Concrete Structures”- re-
quired
Suggested References:
MacGregor, J.G. & Bartlett, F.M. “Reinforced Concrete Me-
chanics and Design: 1st Canadian Ed.”, Prentice Hall, 2000.
Pillai, S.U., Kirk, D.W., Erki, M.A. “Reinforced Concrete
Design,” 4rd Ed., 2009, McGraw-Hill Custom Publishing.
Brzev, S, and Pao, J., “Reinforced Concrete Design –
A Practical Approach,” Updated Edition, 2009, Pearson
Custom Publishing, Toronto, ON.
Kosmatka et al., “Design and Control of Concrete
Mixtures,” 8th Canadian Edition, 2011 Cement
Association of Canada. (useful in general)
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1 INTRODUCTION
2 FLEXURE IN REINFORCED CONCRETE MEMBERS
3 SHEAR IN REINFORCED CONCRETE MEMBERS
4 BOND BETWEEN CONCRETE AND REINFORCEMENT
5 SERVICEABILITY
6 CONCRETE COLUMNS
7 CONCRETE SLABS
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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CONCRETE STRUCTURES
Buildings
Bridges
Parking Structures
May be:
Stadiums cast-in-place
Tanks or
precast
Retaining Walls
Hydraulics Structures and Dams
Offshore Oil Structures
Underground structures and tunnels
Pavement
Cast-in-place concrete building (Photo courtesy of Y. Turkan, UW)
Engineering 5 Building Construction, March 23, 2009, University of Waterloo
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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WHY CONCRETE ?
CONCRETE is today's the most
frequently used material in the building
industry.
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CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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Massive Structures
Niagara Falls Power Plant
http://www.nypa.gov/facilities/niagara.htm
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Hoover Dam 1936
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Bridges
Salginatobel Bridge 1930 Designed by Robert Maillart
Photo: Nicolas Janberg
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Buildings
Burj Khalifa Dubai
Webb Tower on the USC campus in
Los Angeles
http://timelines.latimes.com/l-quake-
danger-which-buildings-are-risk
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The “Office of the Future” Dubai
3-D printed concrete
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Roads
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Concrete can be formed into
many shapes
Santiago Calatrava’s auditorium in Santa Cruz de
Tenerife
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Carbon Footprint
CO emissions 2
Cement production causes approximately
5% of global man-made CO2 emissions
• 50% of emissions are process emissions
that happen during clinker production,
• 40% come from the burning of the fuels
to heat the cement kiln, and
• 10% come from electricity use and trans-
portation
80% of a buildings CO2 emissions are generated
not by the production of the materials
but in the electric utilities of the building over
its life-cycle (e.g. lighting, heating, air-
conditioning)
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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STRUCTURAL CONCRETE
Structural Concrete: all concrete used for structural
purposes; that is, to carry loads
Non-structural concrete: curbs, patios, architectural,
landscaping, etc.
Structural concrete is almost always “reinforced” with another
material:
steel
fibre-reinforced polymers
unreinforced or plain structural concrete is not common
Reinforcement for structural concrete may be:
reinforced (non-prestressed)
partially prestressed (combination of prestressed and
non-prestressed reinforcement)
prestressed
pretensioned
post-tensioned
bonded
unbonded
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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WHY “REINFORCED” CONCRETE
Comparison of Individual Materials
Concrete Steel
good compressive strength, equal strength in
but virtually no tensile compression (10 x strength
strength of concrete)
and tension (100 x strength
of concrete)
limited ductility excellent ductility
good durability susceptible to corrosion
low maintenance higher maintenance
basic materials are readily iron ore expensive to obtain
available: sand, gravel, and process
cement
high fire resistance requires fire protection
Advantages of Concrete:
Architectural & structural function: form various shapes
Rigidity: stiffness & mass result in less vibration
Opportunities for utilization of waste materials
Disadvantages of Concrete:
Formwork and shoring required
Low strength per unit weight or volume:
Strength approx. 10 % of steel
Unit density approx. 30 % of steel
Time dependent volume changes: creep & shrinkage
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By combining steel and concrete so that steel resists the
tensile forces and concrete resists the compressive forces, a
material which is “strong,” durable, ductile and “inexpensive” is
obtained.
Combined Material Structural Concrete:
Structural compatibility
materials need to be connected or bonded together to
transfer stresses/forces
steel bars have surface deformations (standard deformed
bars) to provide adequate bond
Thermal compatibility
Coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) for concrete and
steel are approximately equal
CTEconc ≈ 10 x 10-6/oC
CTEsteel ≈ 12 X 10-6/oC
low risk of damage due to incompatible thermal
expansion/contraction
Concrete as protection
portland cement concrete has a high pH steel will not
corrode
adequate concrete cover reduces the risk of steel
corrosion and also provides protection against fire
damage
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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BEHAVIOUR OF STRUCTURAL CONCRETE
Plain Concrete Reinforced Concrete
Load
Load
Reinforcement
Sudden Fracture
Load vs Deflection:
Reinforced
Load
x
Load
Unreinforced
x
Deflection
Deflection
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THE STRUCTURAL DESIGN PROCESS
Engineering is the art of modelling materials we do not wholly understand,
into shapes we cannot precisely analyze, so as to withstand forces we can-
not properly assess, in such a way that the public has no reason to suspect
the extent of our ignorance. -A.R. Dykes
Engineering problems are under-defined; there are many solutions, good, bad
and indifferent. The art is to arrive at a good solution. This is a creative activi-
ty, involving imagination, intuition and deliberate choice. -O. Arup
“Structural design” is selection of the layout, materials, and dimen-
sions of a structure in order to ensure it is able to fulfil certain re-
quirements. Its purpose is to ensure that the structure is:
– Safe must be able to withstand loads acting on it dur-
ing its lifetime and should have adequate integrity
to withstand local damage without disproportional
spread of damage or total collapse
– Serviceable behaviour must be satisfactory (i.e. deflections,
vibrations, crack widths within tolerable limits)
– Economical construction and lifetime maintenance costs
should be minimized
– Durable should resist tendency to degrade due to expo-
sure to the environment
– Aesthetical should be attractive in appearance and comple-
ment surroundings
The design process can be described as follows:
1) Definition of client’s needs
2) Concept development Iterative
3) Final design
Main reference: [CAC Handbook §1.1]
Additional reading: [M&B §2.1, §2.2, §2.8]
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
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BEHAVIOUR OF CONCRETE/COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH
The compressive behaviour of concrete is normally characterized
by tests on 150x300 mm cylinders:
Stress-strain behaviour under compressive load:
– linear behaviour up to ~40% of f’c
– “bond cracks” start to appear with further increase in load
– “mortar cracks” start to appear at 50-60% of f’c
– at ~75% of f’c, mortar cracks start to form continuous pattern
– maximum load at f’c
– εcu = 0.0035 often assumed for design
– formulas for the modulus of elasticity, Ec, [CSA A23.3 §8.6]:
1.5
o
general: Ec 3300 fc 6900 c
2300
where c = concrete density (kg/m3)
o simplified: Ec 4500 fc
– parabolic relationship between stress and strain often assumed,
c
2
i.e.: fc fc 2
c
c c
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Lateral strain effect (confinement, tensile strain)
Confinement (lateral compressive stress)
Lateral tensile strain (stress)
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BEHAVIOUR OF CONCRETE /TENSILE STRENGTH
The tensile strength of unreinforced concrete is normally deter-
mined using one of the following tests:
Collins, M.P., Mitchell, D., "Prestressed Concrete Basics", CPCI, 1987
In the various tensile strength (fcr or fr) expressions:
– λ = 1.00 for normal density concrete
– λ = 0.85 for semi-low-density concrete
– λ = 0.75 for low-density concrete
The tensile strength of concrete is often ignored in design.
CivE 414 - Topic 1: Introduction University of Waterloo
