RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

DESCRIPTION OF THE FLOOR

The figure below shows the first floor of a G+2 office building. The floor system is to be
designed as a beam supported solid slab. The floor has a floor finish material of 2cm porcelain
tile over a 3cm cement screed and it has a 2cm plastering as ceiling. To account for the load of
permanent partitions and fixtures, a permanent load of 2KN/m2 is considered in design. Design
the floor system using concrete grade of C25/30 & reinforcement grade of S-400. Take the
exposure class to be XC-1. Use rebar size of Ø10 for main reinforcement of the slab.

STEP-1: Design Constants

Concrete: C25/30 ⇒ fck = 25; fctm = 2.565; fcd = 14.17;
Rebar: S-400 ⇒ fyk = 400; fyd = 347.83; εyd = 1.739‰
Clear concrete cover: For slabs under exposure class of XC-1, the clear concrete cover is;
20mm 20mm
cover     cover  20mm
  10 10  10  20mm

Unity University 1 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

STEP-2: Depth Calculation

Assuming ρ = ρo and using equation 7.16a of the code, the uncorrected l/d value is;

l  o  o  
1.5

 K 11  1.5 fck  3.2 fck  1 

d      
o  0.001  f ck  0.001 25  5 103  0.5%

l  0.5  0.5  
1.5

 K  11  1.5 25   3.2 25   1   18.5K

d  0.5  0.5  
l
 18.5K
d
To correct this value for steel grade, multiply it with 500/fyk. That is;
l 500 500
 18.5K   18.5K   23.13K
d f yk 400
NOTE: you can use the table named “Initial corrected l/d values for slabs” that is given in
chapter-2 to get the same result of 23.13K.
l
Therefore, the effective depth is; d
23.13K
Substituting l = Lx and the respective value of K for each panel will give the depth. The
calculation of the depth for each panel is shown in the table below.
Ly Lx l = lx
Panel Ly/Lx Type Span Type K l/d d (mm)
(m) (m) (mm)
S1 6 4 1.5 Two way End span 1.3 30.07 4000 133.03
S2 4 4 1 Two way End span 1.3 30.07 4000 133.03
S3 6 4.8 1.25 Two way End span 1.3 30.07 4800 159.63
S4 4.8 4 1.2 Two way Interior span 1.5 34.7 4000 115.28
CA-1 4.8 1.2 4 Cantilever Cantilever 0.4 9.25 1200 129.73

The largest depth is from panel S3 and it is 159.63mm.

Therefore, the gross depth is; D  d  d '
 10
Where, d '  cov  20   25mm
2 2
D  d  d '  159.63  25  184.63mm  200mm
NOTE: It is quite acceptable to round-up the gross depth to 190mm if the building is large and
if you want to reduce the weight of the building (because most of the dead load of the building
comes from the weight of the slab). In fact, according to the European commission joint
research center (JRC) scientific and policy report on Eurocode-2, an iteration process can be
implemented to get a smaller depth. Look at page- 13 and 14 for demonstration of this method.

Unity University 2 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

STEP-3: Loading
 Dead Load
Unit weights of the construction material used here are;
Concrete = 25KN/m3 porcelain floor finish = 23KN/m3
Cement mortar = 23KN/m3 HCB = 14KN/m3
The calculation of the dead load (KN/m2) is shown below.
Thickness, t Unit weight, γ Load, gk
(m) (KN/m3) (KN/m2)
Self-weight 0.2 25 5
Plastering 0.02 23 0.46
Floor Finish 0.02 23 0.46
Mortar Screed 0.03 23 0.69
Partition Wall 2 2
Total dead load, gk = 8.61

At the tip of the cantilever there is a 1.5m high, 25cm thick wall (20cm thick HCB with 2.5cm
plastering on both faces). The dead load (KN/m) due to this wall is calculated as shown below.
Thickness, t Unit weight, γ Gk
3
(m) (KN/m ) (KN/m)
HCB 0.2 14 2.8
Plastering x 2 0.025 23 1.15
For H = 1m; 3.95
Dead load for H = 1.5m is; 1.5*3.95 = 5.925
NOTE: This wall load (Gk) is a line load and it should not be added with the distributed dead
load (gk) acting on the cantilever.
 Live load
Since the floor is used as an office, it is under Category-B as per Table 6.1 of ES EN 1991-1-
1. And from Table 6.2 of ES EN 1991-1-1, the live load for Category-B floor is qk = 3KN/m2.
 Factored load
wd = 1.35gk + 1.5qk = 1.35*8.61 + 1.5*3 = 16.12 KN/m2
Factored dead load at cantilever tip is; Gd = 1.35Gk = 1.35*5.925 = 8 KN/m
STEP-4: Moment Calculation
For two-way slab panels, the design moments are; mi  i wd L2x
Panel Case Lx Ly/Lx αxs αxf αys αyf wd*Lx2 mxs mxf mys myf
S1 CASE-4 4 1.5 0.078 0.059 0.047 0.036 257.76 20.11 15.21 12.11 9.28
S2 CASE-4 4 1 0.047 0.036 0.047 0.036 257.76 12.11 9.28 12.11 9.28
S3 CASE-4 4.8 1.25 0.066 0.049 0.047 0.036 371.17 24.5 18.19 17.45 13.36
S4 CASE-2 4 1.2 0.048 0.036 0.039 0.029 257.76 12.37 9.28 10.05 7.48

Unity University 3 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

For the cantilever, taking 1m strip;

wd L2x 16.12 1.22

mxs   Gd Lx   8 1.2  21.2KNm
2 2
The moments are shown in the figure below.

STEP-5: Moment Adjustment

A) Support moment adjustment
mlarge  msmall
If m%  100 < 20% then take average, otherwise use moment distribution.
mlarge
Between S1 and S2
The moments are the same, m =12.11KNm/m
Between S1 and S3
24.5  20.11
m%  100  17.92% < 20% ⇒ use average
24.5
24.5  20.11
⸫ The adjusted support moment is, m   22.3KNm / m
2
Between S2 and S4
12.11  10.05
m%  100  17% < 20% ⇒ use average
12.11
12.11  10.05
⸫ The adjusted support moment is, m   11.08KNm / m
2

Unity University 4 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

Between S3 and S4
17.45  12.37
m%  100  29.11% ≥ 20% ⇒ use moment distribution
17.45
I I I I
Stiffness K3    0.208 I K4    0.25 I
L3 4.8 L4 4
Distribution factors
K3 0.208 I K4 0.25I
DF3    0.455 DF4    0.545
K 3  K 4 0.208I  0.25 I K 3  K 4 0.208I  0.25I
The fixed end moments are the support moments; FEM3 = -17.45 and FEM4 = 12.37
The unbalanced moment is; Δm = -(FEM3 + FEM4) = -(-17.45 + 12.37) = 5.08
Finally balance the moments. The process is shown below.
S3 S4
4.8 4

Member S3 S4
K 0.208 0.25
DF 0.455 0.545
FEM -17.45 12.37
Δm 5.08
Δm*DF 2.31 2.77
FEM+(Δm*DF) -15.14 15.14
⸫ The adjusted support moment is, m = 15.14KNm/m
Between S4 and CA1
Take the moment of the cantilever, m =21.2KNm/m
B) Span moment adjustment
Span moment should be adjusted only for the panels where the support moment is decreased
during support moment adjustment. The equations are;
mxf  mxfold  cx  mxs  cx  m ys
m yf  mold
yf  c y  mxs  c y  m ys

Determination of the panels that need span moment adjustment is shown in the table below.
Support moments Adjust span Δmxs and
Panel
moment Initial Adjusted Status Moments ? Δmys
mxs 20.11 22.3 Increased No
S1
mys 12.11 12.11 unchanged No
mxs 12.11 11.08 Decreased Yes Δmxs = 1.03
S2
mys 12.11 12.11 unchanged No
mxs 24.5 22.3 Decreased Yes Δmxs = 2.2
S3
mys 17.45 15.14 Decreased Yes Δmys = 2.31
mxs 12.37 15.14 Increased No
S4
mys 10.05 11.08 Increased No
Therefore, the span moments of panel S2 and S3 should be adjusted as follows.

Unity University 5 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

Panel S2
mxfold  9.28 yf  9.28
m old
mxs  1.03 For mxs and Ly/Lx = 1; cx = 0.28 cy = 0.38
⇒ mxf  mxfold  cx  mxs  cx  m ys  9.28  (0.28 1.03)  9.57 KNm / m

yf  c y  mxs  c y  m ys  9.28  (0.38  1.03)  9.67 KNm / m

⇒ m yf  mold
Panel S3
mxfold  18.19 yf  13.36
m old
mxs  2.2 For mxs and Ly/Lx = 1.25; cx = 0.3585 cy = 0.357
mys  2.31 For mys and Ly/Lx = 1.25; cx = 0.3315 cy = 0.1535
⇒ mxf  mxfold  cx  mxs  cx  m ys  18.19  (0.3585  2.2)  (0.3315  2.31)  19.74 KNm / m

yf  c y  mxs  c y  m ys  13.36  (0.357  2.2)  (0.1535  2.31)  14.5 KNm / m

⇒ m yf  m old

The final adjusted moments are shown in the figure below.

STEP-6: Reinforcement
From depth calculation, we have D = 200mm and d’ = 25mm. The effective depth is;
For –ve bars and +ve bars at bottom d x  D  d '  200  25  175mm
For +ve bars at bottom “top” d y  d x    175  10  165mm

Unity University 6 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

 0.26 f ctm
 f bd  0.26  2.565 bd 0.00167bd
As ,min  yk  400   As ,min  1.67 103 bd
0.0013bd 0.0013bd 0.0013bd

⸫ As ,min  1.67 103 bd  1.67 103 1000 175  293mm2
3D 3  200  600
Smax     Smax  400mm
400 400
kx f yd 347.83 kx
As  bd where m    30.69  As  1000  d
m 0.8 f cd 0.8 14.17 30.69
 4M  c1  2.5
Where k x  0.5 c1  c12  2 d 
 bd c2  c2  0.32 f cd  0.32 14.17  4.53
as b 78.54 1000 78540
S for ϕ10 rebar, as = 78.54mm2 S 
As As As
78540
If As < As,min then take As,min and the spacing will be; S   268mm  260mm
293
The calculation of reinforcement area and spacing is shown in the table below.
Location Md d kx As Take As S
b/n S1-S3 22.3 175 0.066 377 377 208 ≈ 200
Support b/n S2-S4 11.08 175 0.0324 185 293 260
(Top) b/n S1-S2 12.11 175 0.0354 202 293 260
Rebar b/n S3-S4 15.14 175 0.0444 254 293 260
b/n S4-CA1 21.2 175 0.0627 358 358 219 ≈ 210
S1 15.21 175 0.0447 255 293 260
Span
S2 9.67 175 0.0282 161 293 260
(Bottom)
Rebar S3 19.74 175 0.0583 333 333 235 ≈ 230
S4 9.28 175 0.027 154 293 260
Span S1 9.28 165 0.0305 164 293 260
(Bottom S2 9.57 165 0.0314 169 293 260
"top") S3 14.5 165 0.0479 258 293 260
Rebar S4 7.48 165 0.0245 132 293 260
Secondary reinforcement for the cantilever;
a b 78.54  1000
As ,sec  0.2 As but As  s   374mm 2
S 210
As ,sec  0.2  374  75mm 2
3.5D 3.5  200  700
Smax,sec     Smax,sec  450mm
450 450
Using ϕ8 rebars (as = 50mm2)
a b 50  1000
S s   666mm > Smax,sec not ok Take S = 450mm
As 75

Unity University 7 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

STEP-7: Deflection check

Check the deflection for the critical panel (panel S3)
L = 4.8m = 4800mm
d = 175mm
As,cal = 333mm2
As,pro = Ø10@230mm c/c
a b 78.54  1000
 As , pro  s   341.5mm 2
S 230
l L 4800
   27.43
 
 actual
d d 175
l
   N  F1  F2  F3
 d  allow
o  0.001 f ck  0.001 25  5 103  0.5%
As ,cal 333
   1.9 103  0.19%
bd 1000 175
Since ρ ≤ ρo, use equation 7.16a of the code to calculate the uncorrected l/d.

l  o  o  
1.5

N =  K 11  1.5 fck  3.2 fck  1 

d      
K = 1.3 (since it is end span)
l  0.5  0.5  
1.5

N =  1.3  11  1.5 25   3.2 25   1   83.31

d  0.19  0.19  
F1 = 1 (because it is rectangular section) F2 = 1 (because there are no brittle partitions)
 310
  As,cal   SLS load 
F3    s  s  f yd 
 As, pro   ULS load 
1.5  

As,pro/As,cal = 341.5/333 = 1.026 ≤ 1.5 ok
SLS load = gk+ψ2qk =8.61 + 0.3*3 = 9.51KN/m2 (ψ2 =0.3 for Category-B buildings)
ULS load = 1.35gk+1.5qk = 16.12KN/m2
1 9.51
 s  347.83   200
1.026 16.12
 310
  1.55 l
F3   200  F3  1.5    83.31111.5  124.97
1.5  d allow
(l/d)allow =124.97 ≥ (l/d)actual = 27.43 OK

STEP-8: Detailing & Drawing

The slab reinforcement is shown in the last page (page-15).

Unity University 8 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

STEP-9: Load Transfer to Beams

Dead load transfer
The dead load transferred to the beams (in KN/m) for two-way panels is;
For continuous side Vx,c  vx,c gk Lx Vy ,c  vy ,c gk Lx
For discontinuous side Vx,d  vx,d gk Lx Vy ,d  vy ,d gk Lx
The same equation applies to live load by substituting gk with qk. Note that these loads are to
be distributed over the mid 0.75L of the beams.
Using gk = 8.61KN/m2, the dead load transferred to the beams from each panel is shown below.
Panel Case Ly/Lx βvxc βvxd βvyc βvyd Lx gk*Lx Vxc Vxd Vyc Vyd
S1 CASE-4 1.5 0.54 0.35 0.4 0.26 4 34.44 18.6 12.05 13.78 8.95
S2 CASE-4 1 0.4 0.26 0.4 0.26 4 34.44 13.78 8.95 13.78 8.95
S3 CASE-4 1.25 0.485 0.32 0.4 0.26 4.8 41.33 20.04 13.22 16.53 10.75
S4 CASE-2 1.2 0.42 - 0.36 0.24 4 34.44 14.46 - 12.4 8.27

For the cantilever, using gk=8.61KN/m2 and the tip wall Gk = 5.925KN/m, get the reaction by
taking 1m strip as shown below. Note that this loads acts over the whole length of the beam.

Vx,c  gk Lx  Gk  (8.611.2)  5.925  16.26 KN / m

The transferred dead loads are shown in the figure below.

The total dead load on beam comes from; Dead load transferred from slab, partition load
directly resting on the beam and self-weight of the beam. In this case, assuming there are no
walls on the beam and excluding the self-weight of the beams (most computer programs will
calculate the beam self-weight by themselves), the total dead load for each beam is shown
below.

Unity University 9 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

Live load transfer

Using qk = 3KN/m2, the live load transferred to the beams from each panel is shown below.
Panel Case Ly/Lx βvxc βvxd βvyc βvyd Lx qk*Lx Vxc Vxd Vyc Vyd
S1 CASE-4 1.5 0.54 0.35 0.4 0.26 4 12 6.48 4.2 4.8 3.12
S2 CASE-4 1 0.4 0.26 0.4 0.26 4 12 4.8 3.12 4.8 3.12
S3 CASE-4 1.25 0.485 0.32 0.4 0.26 4.8 14.4 6.98 4.61 5.76 3.74
S4 CASE-2 1.2 0.42 - 0.36 0.24 4 12 5.04 - 4.32 2.88
2
For the cantilever, using qk=3KN/m , get the reaction by taking 1m strip as shown below.

Vx,c  qk Lx  3 1.2  3.6 KN / m

Since live load on beam comes only from the slab, the total live load is live load transferred
from slab. The transferred live loads from each panel and the live load acting on each beam
are shown in the figure below.

Unity University 10 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

Unity University 11 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

STEP-10: Check Shear Capacity of Slab (optional)

 Acting shear force
From the load transfer calculation, we see that panel S3 has the largest loads; these are
Dead load = 20.04 KN/m
Live load = 6.98 KN/m
⇒ Factored shear; V = 1.35*20.04 + 1.5*6.98 = 37.1KN/m
Taking 1m strip, V = 37.1KN/m*1m = 37.1 KN
 Concrete shear resistance, VRd,c
 200  As
C k 1001 fck 1/3  bwd 1  
VRd ,c   Rd ,c where, CRd,c = 0.12 k  d 1   bwd
0.035  k fck  bwd
1.5 0.5
2 0.02
 
Using d = 175mm and minimum reinforcement ratio (ρ1 = ρmin);
 200
1   2.07
k  175 k 2 1  min  1.67 103
2

0.12  2  100  0.00167  251/3 1000 175 103  67.63KN
VRd ,c   VRd ,c  86.62KN
3
0.035  2  25 1000 175 10  86.62KN
1.5 0.5

⇒ VEd = 37.1 < VRd,c = 86.62; therefore, the depth is adequate.

------------------------------- END----------------------------------

Unity University 12 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

HOW TO REDUCE THE INITIAL DEPTH OF SLABS

According to the European commission joint research center (JRC) scientific and policy report
on Eurocode-2, an improved l/d equation can be used with an iteration process to get a smaller
depth. The improved equation is;
l s K

d  g k   2 qk 1/3

l  g k   2 qk 
1/3

Rearranging; d
s K
Where
l = span length of slab (Lx for solid slab and Ly for flat slab)
gk = Total dead load = gk1 + gk2
gk1 = self-weight
gk2 = External dead load (plastering, floor finishing, permanent partition…)
qk = Live load
ψ2 = Combination factor for quasi-permanent load condition (Table A1.1 of ES EN-1990)
K = Factor to take into account the structural system or span type (Table 7.4N of ES EN-1992)
λs = Factor that depends on the concrete grade & the ratio of flange to web width bflange/bweb.
The values of λs are given in the table below. Note that for solid and flat slabs bflange/bweb = 1.
C20/25 C25/30 C30/37 C35/45 C40/50
bflange/bw ≤ 3 53 57 60 63 65
bflange/bw > 3 49 53 56 59 61

To start the calculation; first, get an initial estimate of the depth using table 7.4N of the code.
The reduction of the initial depth is an iterative process and the steps are;
Step-1: Calculate the self-weight; gk1 = 25xD
Step-2: Calculate the total dead load; gk = gk1+ gk2
l  g k   2 qk 
1/3

Step-3: Calculate the new effective depth; d 

s K
Step-4: Calculate the new gross depth; D = d +d’
Repeat these steps until the gross depth becomes the same (usually 3 iteration suffice).

Unity University 13 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system

Sample iteration example for the governing panel (panel S3)

Length; l = Lx = 4.8m
K = 1.3 (for End span)
For C25/30 and solid slab; λs = 57
For offices (Category-B) from Table A1.1 of ES EN-1990, ψ2 = 0.3
Live load; qk = 3KN/m2 ⇒ ψ2 x qk = 0.3*3 = 0.9KN/m2
External dead load; gk2 = 3.61KN/m2
First get an initial estimate of the depth using table 7.4N of the code as follows.
For end span l/d = 26
⇒ d = l/26 = 4800/26 = 185mm
⸫ Initial gross depth; D = d + d’ = 185 + 25 = 210mm = 0.21m
Next, to reduce the initial depth, perform the iteration process as follows.

1st iteration
Step-1: gk1 = 25xD = 25*0.21 = 5.25 KN/m2
Step-2: gk = gk1+ gk2 = 5.25 + 3.61 = 8.86 KN/m2
l  g k   2 qk  4.8  8.86  0.9 
1/3 1/3

Step-3: d    0.1385m  138.5mm

s K 57 1.3
Step-4: D = d +d’ = 138.5 + 25 = 163.5mm ≈ 165mm

2nd iteration
Step-1: gk1 = 25xD = 25*0.165 = 4.125 KN/m2
Step-2: gk = gk1+ gk2 = 4.125 + 3.61 = 7.735 KN/m2
l  g k   2 qk  4.8  7.735  0.9 
1/3 1/3

Step-3: d    0.1329m  132.9mm

s K 57 1.3
Step-4: D = d +d’ = 132.9 + 25 = 157.9mm ≈ 160mm

3rd iteration
Step-1: gk1 = 25xD = 25*0.16 = 4 KN/m2
Step-2: gk = gk1+ gk2 = 4 + 3.61 = 7.61 KN/m2
l  g k   2 qk  4.8  7.61  0.9 
1/3 1/3

Step-3: d    0.13225m  132.25mm

s K 57 1.3
Step-4: D = d +d’ = 132.25 + 25 = 157.25mm ≈ 160mm
Since the gross depth from the 2nd and the 3rd iteration are the same, we can stop the iteration.
Therefore, the gross depth of the slab is 160mm.

Unity University 14 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.

Department of Civil Engineering
RC-II Design of a Solid slab floor system
Unity University 15 of 15 Prepared by: Feysel N.
Department of Civil Engineering