498

REINFORCED CONCRETE DESIGN

When openings are provided in flat slabs and flat plates, the requirements of Cl. 31.8 of the Code should be satisfied. In particular, the requirement for the total amount of reinforcement for the slab without opening should be maintained, such that the equivalent of the reinforcement interrupted should be added on all sides of the openings.

Asb

(a) Tearing out of top reinforcement after shear failure

(b) Bottom reinforcement for hanging up slab

Fig. 11.40 Minimum bottom steel required to pass through column

11.8 SHEAR IN COLUMN-SUPPORTED TWO-WAY SLABS

There are two types of shear to be considered in the design of two-way slabs supported on columns (with or without beams along column lines): 1. one-way shear or beam shear, and 2. two-way shear or punching shear. Considerations of one-way shear predominate when beams are provided along the column lines; in fact, there is no need to check for two-way shear when the beams provided are relatively stiff. On the other hand, two-way shear considerations predominate in the case of beamless slabs (flat slabs and flat plates). However, both one-way shear and two-way shear need to be checked in two-way slabs supported on flexible beams (see also Section 11.5.8) .
11.8.1 One-Way Shear or Beam Shear

The critical section for one-way shear in column-supported slabs is located at a distance d from the face of the support (column, capital or bracket), as shown in section 11 in Fig. 11.41. The slab acts as a wide beam supported on, and spanning between, the columns (and hence, the name beam shear, i.e., shear as in the case of beams). The shear stress may be computed for the full slab width, l2, or for a typical strip of slab one metre wide, shown shaded in Fig. 11.41. Assuming the shear to be zero at midspan, the factored one-way shear force per unit length Vu1 is given (similar to Eq. 11.14) as:

Vu1 = wu (0.5ln d )

(11.48)

As mentioned earlier, the Code does not adequately cover provisions related to slabs supported on flexible beams. In the general category of flat slabs, the Code (Cl. 31.6) confines its attention to two-way shear alone.

DESIGN OF TWO-WAY SLAB SYSTEMS

499

In the case of a slab with drop panels [Fig. 11.41(b)], a second section where oneway shear may be critical is at section 22, at a distance d2 from the edge of the drop panel, where d2 is the effective depth of the slab outside the drop.

panel C

l2 d

1m

1 1

(ln/2) 1

d
ln

(a)
C

1m d2

corner column edge of slab

d 1 1 2 2 d d/2 critical section for one-way shear

(b)
Fig. 11.41 Critical sections for one-way shear

(c)

500

REINFORCED CONCRETE DESIGN

The slab thickness must be adequate to ensure that the shear resistance in one-way action (equal to c d per unit length) is not less than the factored one-way shear Vu1. However, generally, deflection control criteria are more critical in governing the slab thickness [see Example 11.1], and slabs are mostly safe in one-way shear. In the vicinity of a corner column, the critical section of the slab for one-way shear is taken along a straight line having a minimum length and located no farther than d/2 from the corner column. In case the slab cantilevers beyond the face of the corner column, the critical section may be extended into the cantilevered portion by a length not exceeding d, [Fig. 11.41(c)].
11.8.2 Two-Way Shear or Punching Shear

When a large concentrated load is applied on a small slab area , there is a possibility of a punch through type of shear failure. A similar situation arises in flat plates and flat slabs supported on columns and subjected to gravity loading and consequent twoway bending. The reaction to the loading on the slab is concentrated on a relatively small area, and if the thickness of the slab is not adequate in this region, shear failure can occur by punching through of the reaction area along a truncated cone or pyramid, with the failure surface sloping outwards in all directions from the perimeter of the loaded (reaction) area, as shown in Fig. 11.42(a). The shear associated with this type of failure is termed two-way shear or punching shear. Extensive research related to punching shear [Ref. 11.27] indicates that the critical section governing the ultimate shear strength in two-way action of slabs (and footings) is along the perimeter of the loaded area. Furthermore, for square columns and loaded areas, it is found that the ultimate shear stress at this section is a function of two parameters, viz., fck and the ratio of the side of the square loaded area to the effective depth of the slab. The shear strength can be made relatively independent of the second parameter by considering a critical section for punching shear at a distance d/2 beyond the edge of the loaded area [Fig. 11.41(b)]. An expression for the design shear strength c 2 (in two-way shear), based on Ref. 11.27 and 11.28, is given [Cl. 31.6.3.1 of the Code] as:

c 2 = k s 0.25 f ck
where

(11.49) (11.49a)

ks 0.5 + c 1.0

and c is the ratio of the short side to the long side of the column or capital. The corresponding ultimate shear resistance, Vc2, is given by

Vc 2 = c bo d

(11.50)

where bo is the perimeter of the critical section, equal to 2(c1 + c2 + 2d) for the column, as indicated in Fig. 11.42(b).

Such a situation is encountered in a footing supporting a column [see Chapter 14]. Tests have shown that the shear strength reduces with increasing rectangularity of the loaded area [Ref. 11.28].

DESIGN OF TWO-WAY SLAB SYSTEMS

501

(a) punching shear failure

c2 d/2 c1 shear area

Vu2 c2 + d c1 + d

(b) assumed critical section

Fig. 11.42 Shear stresses in slabs due to punching shear

In general, the factored shear force, Vu2, causing punching shear, may be computed as the net upward column reaction minus the downward load within the area of the slab enclosed by the perimeter of the critical section. In the Equivalent Frame Method, the column reaction can be obtained from frame analysis. In the Direct Design Method, and for preliminary design purposes, Vu2 may be computed as the total design load acting on the shaded area shown in Fig. 11.43. For computing Vu2 (and Vc2), the critical section to be considered should be at a distance d/2 from the periphery of the column/capital/drop panel, perpendicular to the plane of the slab [Cl. 31.6.1 of the Code], and having a plan shape geometrically similar to the column section, as shown in Fig. 11.43(a), (b). Here, d is to be taken as the effective depth at the section under consideration. For column sections (or loaded areas) with re-entrant corners, a section, no closer than d/2 from column face and having the least perimeter, may be taken as the critical section [Fig. 11.43(d) and (e)]. When openings in the slab are located within a distance of ten times the slab thickness from a concentrated load or reaction area, or within a column strip in a flat slab, the portion of the periphery of the critical section which is enclosed by radial projections of the openings to the centroid of the loaded area must be considered ineffective in computing the shear stress [Cl. 31.6.1.2 of the Code]. Some examples

502

REINFORCED CONCRETE DESIGN

of the effective portions of critical sections for slabs with openings are shown in Fig. 11.44.
C C panel C d/2 d/2 panel C critical section d/2 drop d/2

loaded area

(a)

loaded area critical section d/2

d/2

(b)
d/2 d/2 d/2

d/2

(c)

(d)

(e)

Fig. 11.43 Critical sections and loading for punching shear

opening

critical section d/2 d/2 d/2

(a)

d/2

d/2

(b)

(c)

d/2

Fig. 11.44 Effective perimeter for punching shear calculations in slabs with openings

The ultimate shear stress induced by the factored punching shear force Vu2 at the critical section around a column must be combined with the shear stress due to the transfer of part of the unbalanced slab moment (Muv) to the column through shear

DESIGN OF TWO-WAY SLAB SYSTEMS

503

[refer Section 11.4.3 and Fig. 11.29(c)]. For the purpose of computing shear stresses at the critical section due to Muv, the Code (Cl. 31.6.2.2) recommends that the shear stresses may be assumed to vary linearly about the centroid of the critical section. Accordingly, combining the effects of both Vu2 and Muv, the shear stress distribution is as shown in Fig. 11.45, and the maximum shear stress v 2 (two-way) may be expressed as:

v2 =
where

Vu2 M uv c + bo d Jc

(11.51)

bo perimeter of the critical section; Jc property of the critical section analogous to the polar moment of inertia; and c distance of the point under consideration on the face of critical section to the centroidal axisof the critical section. Expressions for Jc and c (for maximum shear) are indicated in Fig. 11.45 for two typical cases. For other cases, reference may be made to design handbooks such as Ref. 11.25.
Vu Muv max shear b = c2 + d c = a/2 Jc = (ad3 + a3d)/6 + a2bd/2 c c

a = c1 + d

centroidal axis of critical section

(a) interior column

a = c1 + d/2 max shear b = c2 + d c = a2/(2a + b) Jc = (ad3 + a3d)/6 + bdc2 + 2ad(a/2 c)2 c c

centroidal axis of critical section

(b) exterior column Fig. 11.45 Combined shear due to punching and transfer of unbalanced moment from slab to column

If the calculated factored shear stress v 2 exceeds the design shear strength c 2 (given by Eq. 11.49), but not 1.5 c 2 , appropriate shear reinforcement must be

504

REINFORCED CONCRETE DESIGN

provided along the perimeter of the column. The total cross-sectional area Asv of all the stirrup legs in the perimeter is calculated using the following expression [refer Cl. 31.6.3.2 and Ref. 11.11]:
Asv =
( v 2 0.5 c 2 )bo d 0.87 f y

(11.52)

Some typical types of shear reinforcement, recommended in Ref. 11.11 and Ref. 11.14, are shown in Fig. 11.46.

lines of stirrups (spacing 0.75d)

stirrup holders

A
PLAN TYPE I : closed stirrups

TYPE II :

castellated stirrups

SECTION AA

alternative SECTIONAA

Fig. 11.46 Reinforcement for punching shear

Stirrups may be closed or castellated and must pass around one row of tension steel running perpendicular to the stirrups at each face of the relevant section. If the value of v 2 exceeds 1.5 v 2 , the slab thickness should be suitably increased. Alternatively, reinforcement may be made up of shearhead reinforcement, consisting of structural steel I-section or channel section embedded within the slab, and designed in accordance with the ACI Code provision [Ref. 11.19]. Generally, when shear reinforcement is provided, the critical section for punching shear gets shifted farther from the column. Hence, the Code (Cl. 31.6.3.2) requires that the shear stresses should be investigated at successive sections (at intervals of 0.75d, as

DESIGN OF TWO-WAY SLAB SYSTEMS

505

per Ref. 11.11) more distant from the column, and shear reinforcement should be provided up to a section where the shear stress does not exceed 0.5 v 2 . It is recommended that the spacing of stirrups should not exceed 0.75d and must be continued to a distance d beyond the section at which the shear stress is within allowable limits [Ref. 11.11, 11.29]. The design of such shear reinforcement is demonstrated in Example 11.7
11.9 DESIGN EXAMPLES OF COLUMN-SUPPORTED TWO-WAY SLABS

Two examples are presented here for the design of two-way slabs supported on columns (with or without beams) by the unified approach using the equivalent frame concept. In the first example to follow (Example 11.6), the Direct Design Method is applied, and in the next example (Example 11.7), the Equivalent Frame Method is applied.
EXAMPLE 11.6: DIRECT DESIGN METHOD

The plan of a two-way floor slab system, with beams along the column lines, is shown in Fig. 11.47. Based on preliminary estimates, the columns are of size 400 mm 400 mm and the beams are of size 400 mm 550 mm. The floor-to-floor height is 3.5 m. Assume a live load of 5.0 kN/m2 and a finish load of 1.0 kN/m2. Determine the design moments and reinforcement requirements in the various strips in the EW direction for an edge panel and an interior panel (marked S1 and S2 respectively in Fig. 11.47), using the Direct Design Method. Assume M 20 concrete and Fe 415 steel.
SOLUTION

The moments in panels S1 and S2 in Fig. 11.47(a) (in the EW direction) can be determined by DDM, by considering an equivalent frame along column line 2 2, which is isolated and shown in Fig. 11.47(b).
1. Check limitations of DDM 1. There are three continuous spans in each direction. 2. The panels are rectangular with long span/short span ratio = 7.5/6.0 = 1.25 < 2.0. 3. There are no offset columns. 4. There is no difference in successive span lengths. 5. Assuming the slab to be 180 mm thick, wDL = 1.0 + (25 0.18) = 5.5 kN/m2 wu,DL = 5.5 1.5 = 8.25 kN/m2 wu,LL = 5.0 1.5 = 7.50 wu = 15.75 kN/m2 wu,LL/wu,DL = 7.50/8.25 = 0.91 < 3.0 OK [The more severe condition in Ref. 11.8 is also satisfied as the ratio is < 2.0, and the loads are uniformly distributed gravity loads.]