Torsion

introduction
A moment acting about
a longitudinal axis of the
member is called a
torque, twisting moment
or torsional moment, T.
Torsion may arise as the
result of:
(a)Primary or equilibrium
torsion: occurs when the
external load has no
alternative to being
resisted but by torsion.
Examples: curved
girders and the three
structures shown in
Figure.

introduction
secondary or compatibility
torsion: in statically
indeterminate structures from
the requirements of continuity.
Neglecting this torsion will not
cause problems because: (1)
the shear and moment
capacities of the beam are not
reduced by small amounts of
torque, and (2) the stressing of
adjacent members as the beam
twists permit a redistribution of
forces to these members and
reduces the torque that must
be supported by the beam.

Examples of torsion
1. Floor systems: compatibility torque
(perimeter beams supporting one or
two way slab systems).
2. Floor system: equilibrium torque
(circular beams).
3. Circular tie beams in mosques.

Analyze the shown structure

BM slab

BM diagrams

Axial force

Mx

My

Torsion diagram

Shearing stresses due to torsion in

un-cracked members
Torsion subject is usually neglected in teaching
courses of strength of materials. The average
designer does not worry about torsion although
most structures are subjected to torsional
stresses. However, reducing the factor of safety
over the past years resulted in increasing
situations were torsional failures occur with the
result that torsion is a more common problem.
The following is an introduction to the elastic
torsion theory as given in mechanics of materials
books.

Behavior of Circular Sections

Although circular sections are rarely a consideration in normal
concrete construction, a brief discussion serves as a good
introduction to the torsional behavior of other types of sections.
The basic assumptions are:
1. Plane sections perpendicular to the axis of a circular member
remains plane after torque is applied.
2. Radii of section stay straight (without warping).
As a result of applying the torsion shearing stresses
are set up on cross
sections perpendicular
to the axis of the bar as
shown in Fig.

Behavior of Circular
Sections
Shear stress is equal to shear strain
times the shear modulus in the elastic
range. If r is the radius of the element,
J = r4 /2 its polar moment of inertia,
and max is the maximum elastic
shearing stress due to elastic twisting
moment T, then from basic strength
(mechanics) of material courses
r
T
max =
J

Behavior of rectangular
sections

Such sections do not fall under the assumptions stated

before. They warp when a torque is applied and radii don't
stay straight. As a result axial as well as circumferential
shearing stresses are generated. For a rectangular
member, the corner elements do not distort at all
(corners=0) and the maximum shear stresses occur at the
midpoints of the long sides as shown in Figure. These
complications plus the fact that reinforced
concrete sections are neither homogeneous nor
isotropic make it difficult to develop exact
mathematical formulations based on the physical
models.

Behavior of rectangular
sections
From the mathematical theory of elasticity the
magnitude of the maximum shear stress , at
midpoint of the long side, due to a torque T as a
function of the ratio y to x (long to short sides) is
given by
T
max =
2
x y
Where varies from 0.208 for y/x=1 (square bar)
to 0.333 for y/x= (infinity wide plate)

Hollow members
Consider a thinwall tube subjected to a torsion T
as shown in Fig. 8.5. If the thickness of the tube
is not constant and varies along the perimeters of
the tube, then equilibrium of an element like that
in Figure
requires:
1 tb
1 t1 = t 2 q
Vshown
AB = V
1 dx = 2 t 2 dx
CD

Where q is referred to as the shear flow and is

constant.

Hollow members
In order to relate the shear flow q to the torque T, consider an
element of length ds as shown. This element is subjected to a
force qds and

T = P rqdx

but rds = twice the area of the shaded

triangle, then

q
T
T = 2q A o =
t 2Aot the middle of the wall of the
where A is the area enclosed by
o

tube. From the above equation max occurs where t is the least.

Examples
Read example 7.1 in textbook
Example 2: compute the shear stress, , at the
wall and at the lower flange in the section shown
below, due to an applied torque of 1000kN.m.

Principal stresses
due to torsion

Principal tensile stresses eventually cause

cracking that spirals around the body, as
Shown by the line A-B-C-D-E
In reinforced concrete such a crack would
Cause failure unless it was crossed by
reinforcement. This generally takes the form
of longitudinal bars in the corners and closed
stirrups.

Principal stresses due to

torsion and shear

The two shear stresses components add on one

side face (front side) and counteract each other
on the other. As the result inclined cracking
starts on AB and extends across the flexural
tensile face. If bending moments are large, the
cracks will extend almost vertically across the
back face. The flexural compression zone near
the bottom prevents the cracks from extending
full height.

Behavior of RC members subjected

to torsion

When a concrete member is loaded in

pure torsion, shear stresses develop.
One or more cracks (inclined) develop
when the maximum principal tensile
stress reaches the tensile strength
of concrete. The onset of cracking
causes failure of an unreinforced
Member. Furthermore the addition of longitudinal steel without
stirrups has little effect on the strength of a beam loaded in
pure torsion because it is effective only in resisting the
longitudinal component of the diagonal tension forces.
A rectangular beam with longitudinal bars in the corners and
closed stirrups can resist increased load after cracking as
shown in figure.

Behavior of RC members subjected

to torsion
After the cracking of a reinforced beam, failure may occur
in several ways. The stirrups, or longitudinal
reinforcement, or both, may yield, or, for beams that
are over-reinforced in torsion, the concrete between the
inclined cracks may be crushed by the principal
compression stresses prior to yield of the steel. The
more ductile behavior results when both
reinforcements yield prior to crushing of the
concrete.
Figure shows that ultimate strength of
rc beams were the same for solid and hollow
beams having the same reinforcement.

Combined torsion,
moment and shear
Test results for beams without stirrups
loaded with various ratios of torsion
and shear are plotted in figure. The
lower envelope of data is given as:

Tc 2 V c 2
( ) ( ) =1
T cu
V cu
Where Vcu =inclined cracking shear in the absence of
torque.
Tcu = the cracking torque in the absence of shear.

Space Truss Analogy

Theory
Assumptions:
1. Both solid and hollow members
are considered as tubes.
2. After cracking the tube is
idealized as a hollow truss
consisting of closed stirrups,
longitudinal bars in the corners,
and compression diagonals
approximately centered on the
stirrups. The diagonals are
idealized as being between the
cracks that are at angle ,
generally taken as 45 degrees
for RC.

The cracking pure

q
T
=
torsion t 2Aot

Knowing that the principal tensile stress equal to the shear stress
for elements subjected to pure shear, thus the concrete will
crack when the shear stress equal to the tensile capacity of
cross section. If we use conservatively 0.333fc as tensile
strength of concrete in biaxial tension-compression, and
remembering that Ao must be some fraction of the area
enclosed by the outside perimeter of the full concrete cross
section Acp. Also, the value of t can, in general, be
approximated as a fraction of the ratio Acp/Pcp, where Pcp is the
perimeter of the cross section. Then, assuming a value of Ao
approximately equal to 2 Acp /3, and a value of t=3 Acp/4Pcp.
Using these values in Eq. above yields:

f c A 2cp

Note: tensile strength under biaxial

T cr =
compression And tension is less than in uniaxial
(0.67).
3 tension
p
cp

The cracking

Tc 2 V c 2
( ) ( ) =1
torsion
T cu
V cu

In combined shear and torsion, if T=0.25Tcr , the reduction in the

inclined cracking shear is:

Vc
0.25T cr 2
( ) = 1 (
) 0.97
V cu
T cr

This was deemed to be negligible.

The threshold torsion below which torsion can be ignored in a solid
cross section is:

f c A 2cp
T crA=
For isolated beam,
cp is the area enclosed by the perimeter of the
12 ofpcpany holes. P is the perimeter of the
section including the area
cp

section. For a beam cast monolithically with

the floor slab, ACI 11.5.1 defines the
overhanging flange width to be included in
the calculation of Acp and Pcp as shown

The cracking torsion

Note: a lower limit (one fourth of derived) is placed for finding
Tcr in the previous equation for conservative purposes to deal
with equilibrium torsion. The derived value is permitted
according to ACI code for compatibility torsion.

Thin-walled hollow sections

The interaction diagram between shear and torsion approaches
a straight line as Ag /Acp decreases. Where Ag is the area of
concrete only in a cross section and Acp is the total area
enclosed by the perimeter. As a result, a value of T=0.25T cr
would reduce the inclined cracking shear to 0.75V cr. So the ACI
code replaces Acp in the previous equation of Tth
for solid section with Ag , so

f c A 2g
T cr =
12 pcp

Area of stirrups for torsion

Reinforced concrete beams subjected to torsion will have
a decrease in torsional strength after concrete cracks
to about half of that of the uncracked member, the
remainder being now resisted by the reinforcement.
As the section approaches the ultimate load, the
concrete outside the stirrups cracks and begins to spall
off. Thus, the area enclosed by the dimensions xo and
yo is now the one that resists torsion. The xo and yo
dimensions as shown in Figure a are measured to the
centerline of the outermost closed transverse
reinforcement and hence the gross area Aoh = xo yo and
the shear perimeter ph = 2(xo + yo).

Referring to Figure b, the

torsional resistance can be
represented as the sum of the
contributions of the shears in each
of the four walls of the equivalent hollow tube.

T n T i V y (x o /2) V x ( y o/2)
Following a procedure similar to that used for shear,
the quilibrium of a section of the vertical wall with
one edge parallel to a torsional crack with angle
can be evaluated
using the shown Figure as:

V 2 = A t f yt n

Atf

yt

yo

cot

Area of stirrups for torsion

Where:

At = area of one stirrup leg of a closed stirrup.

= yield strength of transverse reinforcement

s = stirrup spacing.
Combining previous two
equations gives:
t
yv o o
n
It has been found experimentally that, after cracking, the effective
area enclosed by the shear flow path is somewhat less than the
value of xo yo =Aoh , instead ACI recommends using 0.85 Aoh with
Ao substituted for Aoh. The value may be taken between 30-60
degrees. ACI 11.5.3.6 suggests that may be taken as 45
degrees, because this corresponds to the angle assumed in the
derivation of the equation for designing stirrups for shear.

yt

T =

2A f

x y

cot

Torsional
longitudinal
reinforcement
The
longitudinal reinforcement
Al must be proportioned to
resist the longitudinal tension forces that occur in the
space truss. A t f yt y o
cot 2
N 2 V 2 cot
s
4
A t f yt
A t f yt p h
2
2(x o y o ) cot
cot 2 A l f y
N N i
s
s
i 1
A t f yt p h
2

cot

Al
sf y
Tn
T p
A t f yt p h
or A l
cot 2 n h cot
2Ao At f yt cot / s s f y
2Ao f y
Tu
Tu / p h
Ao 0.85Aoh ,T n
Al
cot

1.7 Aoh f y

Combined shear and torsion

The previous derivations for stirrups and
longitudinal reinforcement in space truss analogy
assumed all the torsion was carried by the
reinforcement without any torsion carried by the
concrete. When shear and torsion act together,
the 1995 and subsequent ACI codes assume that:
Vn = Vc + Vs
Tn = Ts

Maximum shear and torsion

A serviceability failure may occur if the inclined cracks are too wide at
service loads. The limit on combined shear and torsion in ACI 11.5.3.1
was derived to limit the service-load crack widths.
For a hollow section as shown in Figure the two stresses add at A and
yield:

Vu
Tu p h
v u =section,
experimental
For a member with a soild
results shows that above
2
bw d a1.7
A oh representation is given by:
equation is overconservative,
better
The combined shear stress due
to shear force and torsional
V
T ph 2
moment is limited
v u = ( u ) 2 to
(theu same
)
2
bw d capacity
1.7 A ohas explained in Chapter 6.
criterion for shear

Combined moment and torsion

As shown in figure below: in the tension zone
tensile forces add together contrary to
compression zone. ACI 11.5.3.9 allows the area in
compression zone to be reduced by an amount
equal to M u /0.9dfy

Design Procedure for Combined

Shear, Torsion and Moment
Step 1. Calculate the factored bending moment diagram
or envelope for the member.
Step 2. Select b, d, h and As based on Mu. Note:
shallower wide-beam sections are preferable to deep
and narrow sections for problems involving torsion.
Step 3. Given b and h, draw final Mu , Vu and Tu diagrams
or envelopes. Calculate the reinforcement required for
flexure.
2
A

f
cp
c
Step 4. for a solid section ifT
u

12

pcp

Where =0.75, neglect torsion. Note: replaces Acp in the

previous equation with Ag for thin walled sections.

Design Procedure for Combined

Shear, Torsion and Moment
Step 5: If the torsion is compatibility torsion, the maximum
factored torque may be reduced to
f c A 2cp
T u (the moments and
At sections d from the faces of the supports
3 pcp
shears in the other members must be adjusted accordingly).
Equilibrium torsion cannot be adjusted.
Step 6: Check shear stresses in the section under combined
torsion and shear, for solid section if:

Vu 2
Tu p h 2
Vc
2
( section
) ( for2 shear
) (and torsion

fc )
increase dimensions. The critical
bw d
1.7 A oh
bw d 3
is located a distance d from the face of the support.

Design Procedure for Combined

Shear, Torsion and Moment
For hollow sections

Vu
Tu p h
Vc
2

fc )
2
bw d 1.7A oh
bw d 3

If the wall thickness varies, the equation is evaluated at the location

where the left-hand side is the greatest.
If a hollow section has a wall thickness, t, less than Aoh/ph , ACI
11.5.3.3 requires that the actual wall thickness be used. Thus the
second term in the above equation becomes Tu /(1.7Aoh t)
Steps 7-9. Calculate the required transverse reinforcement for
torsion and shear:
Compute Vs = Vu / - Vc; then calc. Av/s=Vs/fyt d where fyt 4,20MPa.
If increase the size of the cross section.

2
V s>
f c b wd
3

Design Procedure for Combined

Shear, Torsion and Moment
Find:

At = T n
s 2Ao f

yt

Then combine shear and torsional transverse

reinforcement for a typical two-leg stirrup as:

Av t Av
At
=
2
Check minimum transverses reinforcement
s
s requirements:
A v 2A t 0.062 f c b w s/ f

yt

, or (0.35b w s/ f

yt

Solve for the required spacing of closed stirrups s, and

compare it with ph/8 or 30cm maximum spacing for
torsion (ACI 11.5.6.1) and d/2 or d/4 maximum spacing
for shear.

Design Procedure for Combined

Shear
Step 10: Compute longitudinal area of steel using the larger of:
A t f yt p h
cot 2
Al
sf y
5 f c Acp

At
At 0.175bw
f yt

ph

A l ,min
s
s
f y
f ynot exceed
f30cm),
Satisfy the12
spacing
(should
yt
and bar size
requirements (the diameter of longitudinal bar may not be less
than s/24 or 10mm). Torsion reinforcement must be
symmetrically distributed around all cross section and that part
which needs to be placed where As is needed must be added to
As found in step 1. Torsion reinforcement must be extended at
least a distance d+bt beyond the section where

f c A 2cp
Tu
12 pcp

Additional remarks
1. Fy 420MPa to limit crack widths ACI 11.5.3.4
2. The transverse stirrup used for torsional
reinforcement must be of a closed form. The
concrete outside the reinforcing cage is not well
anchored, and the shaded region will spall off if
the compression in the outer shell is large as
shown in figure:

Additional remarks
Thus ACI 11.5.4.2 (a)
requires that stirrups or
ties must be anchored
with a 135o hooks around
longitudinal bars if the
corner can spall. ACI
11.5.4.2 (b) allows the
use of a 90 degrees
standard hook if the
concrete surrounding the
anchorage is restrained
against spalling by a
flange or a slab.

Additional remarks
3. If flanges are included in the computation of
torsional strength for T and L-shaped beams,
closed torsional stirrups must be provided in the
flanges as shown in Figure.

Example 7.2
A cantilever beam 1.35m long supports its own
dead load plus a concentrated load located 0.15m
from the end of the beam and 0.15m away from the
centroidal axis of the beam as shown. The beam
supports its own dead load plus an unfactored
concentrated load which is 90kN dead load and
90kN live load. Design reinforcement for flexure,
shear, and torsion.
Use fy = 420MPa for all steel
and fc = 21MPa.

Example 7.3
Redesign the beam in the previous example using a
hollow cross section. Try the section shown in figure
below.

Example 7.4
The one-way joist system
shown in figure supports
A 16kN/m total factored load
applied directly to beam AB
including beam own weight.
The factored load on the slab
is 15kN/m2.
Design the end span AB of the exterior spandrel beam
on grid line 1. Use fy = 420MPa for all steel and fc =
28MPa.

Homework 1
1. A cantilever beam 2.4m long and 450mm wide supports its own
dead load plus a concentrated load located 150mm from the end of
the beam and 115mm away from the vertical axis of the beam. The
concentrated load is 67kN dead load and 90kN live load. Design
reinforcement for flexure, shear, and torsion. Use fy = 420MPa for all
steel and fc = 26MPa.
2. Given the floor system shown in Fig. P7-3. fc =315MPa, fy =
420MPa for the longitudinal steel and fy = 280MPa for the transverse
steel :
a) Design the spandrel beam between columns A1 and B1 for
bending, shear, and torsion. Check all of the appropriate ACI Code
requirements for strength, minimum reinforcement area, and
reinforcement spacing are satisfied.

(b) Design the spandrel

beam between
columns A1 and A2 for
bending, shear, and
torsion. Check that all
of the appropriate ACI
Code requirements for
strength, minimum
reinforcement area,
and reinforcement
spacing are satisfied.