Torsion Design of Structural Concrete
Torsion Design of Structural Concrete
Torsion Design of Structural Concrete
of Structural Concrete
Based on ACI 318-05
By Mahmoud E. Kamara, Ph.D., and Basile G. Rabbat, Ph.D., S.E.
PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
SERIES
September 2007
Continuing Education
The Professional Development
Series is a unique opportunity to earn
continuing education credit by reading
specially focused, sponsored articles in
Structural Engineer. If you read the
following article, display your understanding of the stated learning objectives, and follow the simple instructions,
you can fulfill a portion of your continuing education requirements at no cost
to you. This article also is available
online at www.zweigwhite.com/media/
pdh/index.asp.
Instructions
First, review the learning objectives below, then read the Professional
Development Series article. Next,
complete the quiz and submit your
PDH
Learning Objectives
This article discusses torsion in
concrete structures. Upon reading the
article and completing the quiz, the
reader should be able to understand
the behavior and design of structural concrete members subjected
to torsion. The article presents the
American Concrete Institutes Building
Code (ACI 318-05) design provisions
and detailing requirements for torsion
design. All referenced items are from
ACI 318-05, unless noted otherwise.
Also, all notations and definitions in
the article are in accordance with
Chapter 2 of ACI 318-05.
Professional Development
Series Sponsor
Portland Cement Association
PDH
is the cracking torque (Section 11.6.1); f = strength reduction factor for torsion; Acp = area enclosed by outside perimeter of concrete cross section, including the void of hollow
cross-sections; and pcp = outside perimeter of concrete
cross-section. The cracking torque corresponds to a principal
tensile stress of 4 fca .
Whether a reinforced concrete
member is subject
to torsion only,
or
to
flexure
combined with
shear, the stiffness
of that member
will
decrease
Figure 3: Free body diagram for vertical
after
cracking.
equilibrium
The reduction in
torsional stiffness
after cracking of a member subject to torsion only is much
larger than the reduction in flexural stiffness after cracking of
a member subject to bending only. If the torsional moment,
Tu , in a member cannot be reduced by redistribution of
internal forces in the structure (equilibrium torsion), that
member must be designed for the full torsional moment,
Tu (Section 11.6.2.1). If redistribution of internal forces can
occur, as in indeterminate structures (compatibility torsion),
the design torque can be reduced. Members subject to
compatibility torsion need not be designed for a torque
larger than the product of the cracking torque times the
strength reduction factor f (which is 0.75 for torsion,). For
cases of compatibility torsion where Tu > fTcr , the member
can be designed for fTcr only, provided redistribution of
internal forces is accounted for in the design of the other
members of the structure (Section 11.6.2.2).
( ) ( )
At
fyt
A! s ph f cot 2 R
y
where At = area of transverse torsional reinforcement at spacing s; ph = perimeter of outermost transverse reinforcement;
and fy = yield strength of longitudinal reinforcement.
( bV d )2+(1.7AT p )2bG( bV d +8
u
w
u h
oh2
c
w
f ca
u h
oh2
c
w
f ca
Critical section
PDH
bw s 50bw s
f ca f r f
yt
yt
f ca Acp
fy
( )
fyt
At
- s ph fy
Spacing of torsion
reinforcement
Spacing of stirrups must not exceed the
smaller of ph /8 and 12 inches. For a square
beam subject to torsion, this maximum spacing is analogous to a spacing of about d/2 in a beam
subject to shear.
The longitudinal reinforcement required for torsion must
be distributed around the perimeter of the closed stirrups,
at a maximum spacing of 12 inches. In the truss analogy, the compression struts push against the longitudinal
reinforcement, which transfers the transverse forces to the
stirrups. Thus, the longitudinal bars should be inside the
stirrups. There should be at least one longitudinal bar or
tendon in each corner of the stirrups to help transmit the
forces from the compression struts to the transverse reinforcement. To avoid buckling of the longitudinal reinforcement due to the transverse component of the compression
struts, the longitudinal reinforcement must have a diameter
not less than 1/24 of the stirrup spacing, but not less than
3/8 of an inch.
(A )
cp2
(A )
cp2
fpc
1+ 4 f a
c
in.-lb.
If Tu < Tcr /4, then torsional effects need not be considered, and the member must be designed for the effects of
flexure and shear only (Section 11.6.1). However, if Tu
Tcr /4, the section must be designed for the effects of flexure,
shear, and torsion. The following steps apply when torsional
effects must be considered.
Step 3 Ascertain whether the torsional moment Tu
determined in Step 1 can be reduced by redistribution of
internal forces after torsional cracking. For members in a
statically indeterminate structure where redistribution of
forces can occur, the maximum factored torsional moment
at the critical section can be reduced to fTcr where Tcr is as
computed in Step 2.
PDH
u h
oh2
c
w
f ca
) in.-lb; and
f ca
) in.-lb.
u h
oh2
c
w
( ) ( )
At
fyt
A! s ph f cot 2 RrA!,min
y
where
A!,min =
f ca Acp
fy
( )
fyt
At
- s ph fy in.-lb.
Selected References
1) ACI Committee 318, Building Code Requirements for
Structural Concrete (ACI 318-05) and Commentary (ACI
318R-05), American Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills,
Mich., 2005.
2) Fanella, D. A. and Rabbat, B.G., Design of Concrete Beams
for Torsion, Engineering Bulletin EB106.02D, Portland
Cement Association, Skokie, Ill., 1997.
3) Kamara, M.E., and Rabbat, B.G., editors, Notes on ACI 31805 Building Code Requirements for Structural Concrete with
Design Applications, Portland Cement Association, Skokie,
Ill., EB705, 2005.
4) Lampert, Paul, Post-cracking Stiffness of Reinforced Concrete
Beams in Torsion and Bending, ACI Special Publication SP35, pages 385-433, American Concrete Institute, Farmington
Hills, Mich., 1973.
5) Lampert, P., and Thurlimann, B., Torsionsversuch an
Stahlbetonbalken (Torsion Tests of Reinforced Concrete
Beams), Bericht Nr. 6506-2, 101 pages, Institute of Baustatik,
ETH, Zurich, Switzerland (in German), 1968.
6) MacGregor, J. G., and Ghoneim, M. G., Design for Torsion,
ACI Structural Journal, V. 92, No. 2, pages 211-218, Mar.Apr. 1995.
a) transverse reinforcement
b) longitudinal reinforcement
c) transverse reinforcement and longitudinal reinforcement
d) none of the above
a) moment distribution
b) thin-walled tube, space truss analogy
c) finite element
d) virtual work
a) 7.5
f ca
b) 6.7
f ca
c) 4
f ca
c) Tcr /4
d) Tu /4
a) d/2
b) h/2
c) h
d) d
d) 2
f ca
a) d/2
b) the smaller of ph /8 and 12 inches
c) the smaller of ph /8 and 8 inches
d) 18 inches
9. T
he longitudinal reinforcement required for torsion must
be distributed around the perimeter of the closed stirrups,
at a maximum spacing not to exceed:
a) d
b) 6 inches
c) 12 inches
d) 18 inches
10. A
rectangular cross section in a statically indeterminate
member, where redistribution of forces is possible, is
subjected to a factored torsional moment Tu = 80 footkips. Assuming that the sections cracking moment multiplied by strength reduction factor Tcr = 100 foot-kips,
which of the following statements is correct:
b) Tcr
4. T
ransverse reinforcement required for torsion must be
anchored:
a) Tcr
3. The current ACI 318 design provisions for torsion are based on:
6. F
or members in a statically indeterminate structure where redistribution of
forces can occur, the maximum factored
torsional moment at the critical section can
be reduced to:
Instructions:
Select one answer for each quiz question and clearly circle the appropriate letter. Provide all of the requested contact information.
Fax this Reporting Form to 847-972-9059. (You do not need to send the Quiz; only this Reporting Form is necessary to be submitted.)
1.
5.
9.
2.
6.
10.
3.
7.
4.
8.
Middle Initial:
Zip:
Certification of ethical completion: I certify that I read the article, understood the learning objectives, and completed the quiz questions
to the best of my ability. Additionally, the contact information provided above is true and accurate.
Signature:
Date:
PDH
Work quickly.
Work simply.
Work accurately.
pcaStructurePoints Productivity Suite of powerful software tools
for reinforced concrete analysis & design
Analysis, design
& investigation of
reinforced concrete
beams & one-way
slab systems
Analysis, design
& investigation of
reinforced concrete
beams & slab systems
0050-06-355