TRIBHUVAN UNIVERSITY

INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING
PULCHOWK CAMPUS

A COMPILED REPORT ON REINFORCED CONCRETE STRUCTURES

Submitted by: Submitted to:

Utsarga Bhandari Department of Civil Engineering
Group-H2

Date of Submission: -2081/04/25

 Experiment no: 1

Compressive strength test of the concrete

Objective
To determine the compressive strength of concrete and to check whether the required
strength based on design is obtained or not.

Material required
28 days cured concrete cube

Apparatus required
Compressive strength testing machine

Theory
Compressive strength of a concrete is designed as the resistance to withstand the
compressive load. The compressive strength of concrete is determined to control the quality
of concrete and to specify the grade of concrete.
Compressive strength=compressive load/cross sectional area
Details of cube testing:
Grade of concrete = M20
Recommended proportion= 1:1.5:3
Size of the cube = 150*150*150 mm
No of cubes = 3

Observations
a. Cubes for concrete used in Flexure and Shear Test

Cube Weight (kg) Failure load (KN) Avg. compressive load (KN)
1 8.380 430 440
2 8.355 480
3 8.307 410

b. Cubes for concrete used in Combined shear and bending and Anchorage

Cube Weight (kg) Failure load (KN) Avg. compressive

load (KN)
1 8.47 450
2 8.10 425 448.33
3 8.38 470

Area of cube = 150*150 mm2 = 0.0225 m2

Calculation
a. Flexure and Shear
 Average compressive strength = average compressive load/area

=440 / 0.0225 = 19.55 MPa

b. Combined shear and bending and Anchorage

Average compressive strength = 448.33/0.0225 = 19.925MPa

Result
Hence the avg. Compressive strength of the cube was found to be 19.55 MPa and 19.925 MPa
respectively for combined bending and shear and flexure conditions.

Comments and conclusions:

The cubes were tested for M20 grade of concrete. There is certain difference in values of
strength of concrete. This discrepancy may be due to the improper mixing, casting, and
curing of concrete.
 Experiment no 2

Work for nominal mix of the concrete

Objectives
I. To determine the required portion for ingredient of concrete
II. To achieve a concrete which is workable in plastic stage and will develop the
required qualities when hardened.

Concrete mix
The proportion of the mix was 1:1.5:3

Principle
A nominal mix concrete is prescribed concrete. It means a proportion of the ingredients
are specified by an engineer without testing the material. The w/c ratio may or may not be
specified; it is understood that sufficient water will be added to get the proper workability.
There is no guarantee that a nominal mix gives the desired strength.

Calculation of the quantities

Inside length of the mold = 750 mm

Inside breadth of mold = 150 mm

Inside depth of mold = 150 mm

∴ Volume of 2 beams = 2*750*150*150 mm 3 = 0.03375 m3
Volume of cube = 150*150*150 mm3 = 3.375*10-3 m3
Volume of 3 cubes = 0.010125 m 3
Total volume required = 0.043875 m3

The volume of concrete is increased by 54 % to obtain dry volume. Hence,

dry volume of concrete = 0.0675675 m3
Density of cement = 1440 kg/m3
Density of sand = 1600 kg/m3
Density of coarse aggregate = 1800 kg/m3
Total part of the mixture = 1+1.5+3 =5.5
Weight of cement =1/5.5*(0.0675675)*1440 = 17.6904 kg
Weight of sand =1.5/5.5*(0.0675675)*1600 = 29.484 kg
Weight of coarse aggregate = 3/5.5*(0.0675675)*1800 = 66.339 kg

Result
Cement required = 17.6904 kg

Sand required = 29.484 kg

Aggregate required = 66.339kg

Obtained proportion by volume = 1:1.5:3

Conclusions
Thus the proportions of each ingredients of concrete required for the following tests were
determined for nominal mix of the M20 concrete:

I. Pure bending
II. Pure shear
III. Combined shear and bending
IV. Anchorage
 Experiment no 3

Pure bending RC response test

Objective
I. To observe the cracking load and yielding load, ultimate load as well as crack
propagation and crushing of concrete at ultimate state.
II. To understand the ductile response of reinforced concrete under monotonic
loading.

Theory
As the beam is defined to resist the imposed bending moment when a reinforced
concrete beam is subjected to monotonously increased loading, it will go through
three distinct stages before it falls completely.

I. Un-cracked stage
II. Cracked stage
III. Ultimate strength stage

Bending causes tension in the portion lying below the neutral axis and compression above
the neutral axis. Hence the beam is reinforced in the tension side with steel such that the
tension force is taken up by the reinforcement during bending. Concrete and steel act
simultaneously with increasing load. Tension steel undergoes large plastic deformation
while tension force remains constant in steel. This results in increased strain in extreme
compression fiber of constant and shifting the neutral upwards the flexural strength of
section is reached when the extreme compression force of concrete attains its ultimate
strain.

In limit state method of design, depth of NA is determined from the equation of internal
compression and tension force as :

C=T

Or, 0.36σckbx = 0.87σyAst

Or, X = 0. 87σ𝑦𝐴𝑠𝑡/0. 36σ𝑐𝑘𝑏

To find moment of resistance of section

a) If X<Xu section is under reinforced

b) MoR = 0. 87𝑓𝑦𝐴𝑠𝑡 (𝑑 − 0. 416 𝑋)

c) If X >Xu, section is over reinforced

MoR = MoR limiting = 0.133 fck*b*d2

Materials required:

I. Cement
 II. Sand
III. Aggregates
IV. Water
V. Steel bars (1-12 mm φ)

Apparatus required:

I. Form water
II. Testing machine
III. Vibrator
IV. Shovels
V. Weighing machine
VI. Hack-saw
VII. Tape

Procedures

I. Formwork was cleaned, prepared and greased.

II. 1-12 mm φ bars was cut to length of 900 mm and edges were bent up to 100
mm
III. The concrete mix was prepared from the calculated amount of cement, sand
and aggregate and water in a given proportion.
IV. The bottom of the formwork was filled by mix upto 25 mm and then steel bar was
placed and then again concrete mix was poured , vibrated and allowed to settle for
24 hours.
V. These cubes 150mm*150mm*150mm were also casted simultaneously.
VI. After 24 hours, formwork was removed and the beam and cube were cured for 28
days and testing was done in the lab.

Observation and calculation:

Preliminary data:
 I. Provided length of beam (l) =
75cm
II. Breadth of beam (b) = 150 mm
III. Overall depth of the beam (D) = 150 mm

IV. Effective depth of beam (d) = 150 - 25 - 12/2 mm =119 mm

V. Area of the tensile steel (Ast) = 113.1 mm2
VI. Grade of concrete (fck ) = 20 MPa
VII. Grade of steel (fy ) = 500 MPa
VIII. Neutral axis (X) = 0.87fyAst /0.36 fck b = 45.55 mm
IX. Critical neutral axis (Xul) = 0.46 x 119 mm = 54.74 mm
X. Since X < Xul , section is under reinforced
XI. MoR= 0. 87𝑓𝑦𝐴𝑠𝑡 (𝑑 − 0. 42 𝑋)= 4.91 KNm

Load Deflection Load Deflection

(kN) (*0.01m) (kN) (*0.01mm )
5 20 50 146
10 31 55 162
15 39 60 180
20 45 65 215
st
25 54(1 crack) 70 379
30 78
35 98
40 114
45 131(2nd crack)

Observation data:

Load =25 kN

Moment
(25*0.55)/4=3.44kN-m
Deflection at first crack = 0.54 mm

Result and conclusions:

At the tension side of the beam, nearly vertical cracks were developed which is due to the
dominance of the bending stress compared to shear near the mid span of the beam resolving
in flexural cracking perpendicular to the axis of the beam.

Also the moment of resistance is different for theoretical and practical aspects. This may
be due to the poor quality of aggregate, cement and sand. It may be due to poor
workmanship, inadequate curing or may be due to improper mixing.
 Experiment no 4

Combined bending and shear test

Objective
I. To analyze the modes of failure and evaluating loading criteria
II. To compare the theoretical value and experimental value of shear taken by
design section

Theory
Shear failure occurs under the combined action of bearing force and bending moments
and is characterized by very small deflection and lack of ductility. The failure is sudden
and occurs without warning. For this reason, shear failure is considered undesirable and
is usually avoided as far as possible. Hence it is very important to understand and to
analyze the shear failure phenomenon.

Change in bending moment along the span of beam causes the shear stresses and hence
shear force. The load at which diagonal crack forms is taken as the strength of the beam
in shear. An exact analysis of shear in reinforced beam is quite complex, extensive
experimental studies have release that the load carrying diagonal crack is resisted by
beam and consist of following components:

I. Shear resisted by the dowel action of the flexural reinforcement known as

dowel shear capacity (15-30 %)
II. Shear carried by critical component of interface along the crack due to
aggregate interlocking (35-50 %)
III. Shear resisted by under locked concrete in compression (20-40% ) In

simple concept, normal shear stress is given by

Τuv = vu/bd

Materials required:
I. Cement
II. Sand
III. Aggregate
IV. Water
V. Steel rods
VI. a. 2-8 mm φ top bars

b. 2-10 mm φ bottom bars

c. 5- 8 mm φ vertical stirrups @140 mm c/c

Apparatus required:
I. form work
II. testing machine
III. shovel
IV. tamping rods
V. tape
VI. bending arrangement

Procedures:
I. Formwork was cleaned and assembled.
II. The formwork was greased uniformly from inside.
III. Steel bars and stirrups were cut and bent as per requirement.
IV. The bars were then fixed accordingly.
V. The concrete mix was then prepared and mixed properly taking the calculated
amounts and placed in formwork and tamped with a tamping rod.
VI. The work was then allowed to set for 24 hours and then cutting was done for 20
days and testing was done.

Observations and calculations:

Dimension of the beam = 750 mm x 150 mm x 150 mm
Effective depth = 120 mm
Area of the tensile bar = 157.08 mm2
Area of the compressive bar = 100.53 mm 2
Grade of the steel = 500MPa
Grade of concrete = 20 MPa
Area of transverse reinforcement (Asv) =100.53 mm2
Percentage of tensile steel = 0.698 %
Τc = 0.54336 N/mm2 (Table 19 IS 456)
Permissible shear force = Tc *b* d = 9.78 kN
Due to vertical stirrups = 37.483 kN (cl 40.4)
Total = 47.263 kN
 Load(kN) Deflection Crack no Load(kN) Deflection Crack no
5 28 55 104
10 34 60 116
15 44 65 130
20 55 70 145 3
25 64 75 157 4
30 75 80 170
35 85 1 85 184
40 94 2 90 200
45 95 95 211
50 99 100 229

From experiment:

Load at which crack started = 35kN

For bending:

Xu = ( 0.87fyAst – Asc (fsc – fcc )) / 0.36 fck b fcc=

0.446 * fck = 8.92

Xu=23.607 mm

By trial and error ,let’s proceed

Xu,l = 0.46*120 = 55.2 mm

So, it is under-reinforced section

Trial 1st,

Adopt Xu=( Xu,l +Xu)/2= 39.404 Esc

= 0.0035(1- d’/Xu)= 0.001

Fsc = 288.7

Xu = (0.87fyAst – Asc (fsc – fcc ))/ 0.36 fck b = 37.225

Trial 2nd

Adopt Xu = 37.225 Esc

= 0.001149

Fsc = 288.7 N/ mm2 Xu

= 37.225
By multiple iteration process Xu

= 37.225

MoR = (0.36 fck b Xu (d-0.416 Xu ) + Asc (fsc – fcc ) (d- d’ ) = 6.68 KNm
From experiment:

Load developed at the crack = 35 kN

Shear force at which cracking started = 35 /2 = 17.5 kN

Actual moment of resistance developed practically = 4.8125 kNm

Hence, actual moment developed practically < theoretical moment

Comments and conclusions:

Cracking pattern

The crack was initiated from the bottom almost at the center of the beam, then another
crack appeared near the first crack. These cracks occurred due to tension at the lower end.
Then diagonal cracks started appearing starting from near the support and traveling
towards the center almost in 45 degree, showing shear failure of the beam.
From the observed value of cracking it can be said that the failure was due to a
combination of both shear and flexure. As the design value of shear strength and bending
moment was very much below, the load applied in beam is safe in both shear and bending.
The experimental value of MOR is less than the theoretical [Link] may be due to poor
quality of sand, cement, aggregate etc. it may be also due to improper mixing and poor
workmanship, inadequate curing etc.
 Experiment no 5

Bond and anchorage test

Objective
To observe the bond failure pattern in the RC beam

Theory
Lapping is done to join two reinforcing bars to form a longer one to develop full
strength by bond round the surface so that it doesn’t slip under the design stress. The
force may be transferred from one bar to another by a lapped or mechanical welded
joint. The splicing should be as far as possible away from the section of high stress and
where several parallel bars are to be joined, the joints should be staggered. It is
recommended that splices in flexural members should not be provided at sections where
the BM is more than 50 % of MoR and more than 50 % of total bars shouldn’t be joined
at one section.

Materials
I. RC beam of 750 mm
II. M20 concrete
III. Fe500 with shear reinforcement

Procedures:
I. Formwork was cleaned, prepared and greased.
II. 2-12 mm φ bars were cut to length of 525 mm and edges were bent up to
100mm in each bend
III. The overlapping of 200 mm is done so that the two bars combinely act as
tension bars in bending.
IV. The concrete mix was prepared from the calculated amount of cement, sand,.
Aggregates and water in a given proportion.
V. The bottom of formwork was filled by mixing up to 25 mm and then steel bars
were placed and then again concrete mix was poured, vibrated and allowed to settle
for 24 hours.
VI. The cubes of size 150*150*150 mm were also casted simultaneously.
VII. After 24 hours formwork was removed and beam and cubes were cured in 28
days and testing was done in a lab.
 Observations and calculations:
Preliminary data:

Provided length of the beam (l) = 750 mm

Breadth of beam (b) = 150 mm

Overall depth of beam (D) = 150 mm

Effective depth of beam (d) = 150-25-10/2 = 120 mm

Dead load of the beam (W) = 0.54 KN/m

Here, Ld = 0.87 fy Φ/4Tbd = 566.40 mm

tbd = 1.2 x1.60 = 1.92 N/mm2

Lapping provided = 200 mm < Ld

Hence the failure at the bond is observed directly near the lapping.

Load Deflection Remarks

(kN) (x 0.01 mm)
5 22

10 26

15 32

20 36

25 48

30 62

35 68

40 75

45 83

50

Results and conclusions:

Due to insufficient lapping (lapping <Ld ), the failure of the beam at the bond is
observed during the test.

Comments
As the provided lap length (200mm) < theoretical development length (566.40 mm) for
flexural tension side, failure of beam took place at the location of overlapping.

Hence For flexural tension provided lap length should be at least equal to Ld
 Experiment no 6

Shear failure test

Objective
To know about the mode of shear failure in the RC beam

Materials required
I. RC beam of span 750 mm
II. M20 concrete
III. Fe500 with shear reinforcement

Equipments
Beam test machine

Theory
Shear force is present in the beam where there is a change in bending moment along the
s pan. It is equal to the rate of change of bending moment. An exact analysis of shear in
RC concrete beams is quite complex. Several experimental analysis have been
conducted to understand the various modes of failure which could occur due to possible
combinations of shear and bending moment acting at the given section.

The modes are:

I. Diagonal tension failure

II. Flexural shear failure
III. Diagonal compression failure

Study has shown that shear force is resisted by the un-cracked concrete in the compression
region. The aggregates interlocking and the shear acting across the longitudinal steel bars.
Shear reinforcement if present will also resist shear failure.

Procedures:
I. Formwork was cleaned, prepared and greased.
II. 2-10 mm φ bars, which were cut to length of 900 mm and edges were bent up to
100 mm in each end, were provided at the bottom.
III. 2-8 mm φ bars, which were cut to length of 900 mm and edges were bent up to
100 mm in each end, were provided at the top.
IV. 3-8 mm φ bars were used for vertical stirrups
V. The concrete mix was prepared from the calculated amount of cement, sand
and aggregates and water in given proportion
VI. The steel framework was placed inside the formwork works and was filled by
concrete mix by pouring and compacting and allowed to settle for 24 hours.
VII. The 3 cubes of size 150*150*150 mm were also casted simultaneously.
VIII. After 24 hours, formwork was removed and beams and cubes were cured for 28
days and testing was performed on it.
Observations and calculations:
Load(kN) Deflection Crack no Load(kN) Deflection Crack no
(0.01mm) (0.01mm)

5 10 55 95

10 19 3
60 108

15 27 65 122

20 27 70 135

25 34 75 145

30 42 80 160

35 51 85 175

40 60 90 190
1
45 71 95 208

50 82 2 100 220

Dimensions of the beam = 750 mm *150mm *150mm

Effective depth (d) = 150- 25 - 5= 120 mm

Dead load of the beam (w) = 0.15 * 0.15 *0.750 * 25 = 0.56 KN/m

Area of tensile reinforcement (Ast) = 2 * π * 102 /4 = 157.08 mm2

Area of vertical reinforcement (Asv) = 2 * π *8 2 /4 = 100.53 mm2

Spacing of vertical reinforcement (s) = 275 mm c/c

Grade of steel = Fe500

Grade of concrete = M20

% of tensile steel = Ast /(b *D) = 0.698 %

Tuc = 0.543 N/mm2 ( from IS 456 Table 19)

Tmax = 3.1 N/mm2 ( from IS 456 Table 20)

Permissible shear force = Tuc * b* d = 9.774 KN

Increment in shear resistance due to stirrups = Vvl = 0.87 fy Asv *d /Sv = 19.08 kN

Total Vu theoretically = Vus + Vul = 9.774+19.08 = 28.854 kN

Practically observed shear resistance = 45 kN / 2 = 22.5 kN

Measured Deflection during first cracking = 0.71 mm

Results and conclusions

The theoretical shear resistance of the beam was found to be 28.854 kN whereas the
experimental shear resistance was found to be 22.5 kN.

The practical shear resistance is lower than theoretical shear resistance so the beam fails
in shear. From the observation of the cracking pattern during failure we saw few smaller
vertical cracks in the beginning and larger diagonal cracks later which began near the
support and traveled diagonally towards the center.