Chapter 4: INTRODUCTION TO

PRESTRESSED CONCRETE

Definition:
Pre-stressed concrete is a concrete in which internal stresses are introduced so that
the stresses resulting from external loads are counteracted to a desired degree. Pre-
stressing is preloading of a structure before application of the required design
(service) loads in such a way as to improve its overall performance.
The figure below demonstrates the various stages involved during pre-stressing.












Advantages of a PC member
- No cracking since tension is avoided.
- Deflection controlled
- Smaller cross-section
- Efficient use of high strength materials (concrete & steel)
- Improved resistance to shear and repeated loads.
Methods of Pre-stressing
There are two methods of pre-stressing.
1) Pre-tensioning: - Involves stretching of the tendons between external anchorages
before the concrete is placed, and the jacking force is released after the fresh concrete
hardened and reached the desired strength. In this method,
- tensioning is applied using hydraulic jack or mechanical device.
- high strength concrete is used. (> C-40)
- steam curing to accelerate hardening of concrete is used.
- massive end anchorages are required.
- stress is transferred by bonds/friction from the pre-stressed tendons to the
concrete when we cut from the casting bed.



The relative advantages of pre-tensioning as compared to post-tensioning are as
follows.
Pre-tensioning is suitable for precast members produced in bulk.
In pre-tensioning large anchorage device is not present.
The relative disadvantages are as follows.
- A prestressing bed is required for the pre-tensioning operation.
- There is a waiting period in the prestressing bed, before the concrete attains
sufficient strength.
- There should be good bond between concrete and steel over the transmission
length.
2) Post-tensioning: - Hollow conduits containing the unstressed tendons are placed
in the forms to the desired profile before pouring of the concrete. When the concrete
hardens and gains sufficient strength, the tendons are tensioned where they are
anchored by special fitting at the far end of the member and then anchored at the
jacking end by similar fitting after which the jack is removed. The jacking force is
usually applied against the ends of the hardened concrete eliminating the need for
massive abutments.
The relative advantage of this method are the ease with which tendons eccentricity
(profile) can be varied along the span. (e.g. for continuous beams), it is suitable for
heavy cast-in-place members, the waiting period in the casting bed is less, and the
transfer of prestress is independent of bond length.

Disadvantage of Post-tensioning
The relative disadvantage of post-tensioning as compared to pre-tensioning is
the requirement of anchorage device and.









Basic concepts
Different concepts are used to explain the behavior of PC member.
The stress concept: -
- Tensile stresses due to external loading are counteracted by compressive stresses
due to pre-stress resulting the final stress in the extreme fiber to be either
compressive or zero.
- As no tension cracks develop, the member (concrete) is transformed from brittle to
elastic material.
The following two cases shall be considered.
- Concentric tendon or centroidal pre-stressing.



Let, F = Pre-stressing force
M = Moment due to external load
I = Moment of Inertia
A = Area (cross-sectional area).
The final stress in the section at y distance from the NA (centroid) is

+
=
fiber bottom for
fiber top for
I
My
A
F
f


- Eccentric tendon (eccentric pre-stressing)






The stress at any point y along the section may be computed from
I
My
I
Fey
A
F
f =

+
+
fiber bottom for
fiber top for






The strength concept: - (The Internal couple method)
In this method pre-stressing is considered as a combination of high strength steel
and concrete with the steel taking tension and concrete taking compression so that
the two materials form a resisting couple against the external moment.

Note: - C & T in PC beams are constant and the lever arm Z varies with the
magnitude of the external moment (unlike the case of RC beams where the forces C
& T increase with increasing moment and Z is constant).

The stress at any point on a cross section may be obtained using
I
y Pe
A
P
I
y Ce
A
C
f
c c
= =
, where
ec = eccentricity of C w. r. to the centroidal axis
A, I = cross-sectional area & moment of inertia of the gross section
C = total compressive force acting on the cross-section.

The Balanced Load Concept
It is a technique of balancing the external load by selecting a pre-stressing force and
tendon profile that creates transverse load acting opposite to the external load. This
method is the most widely used method for post-tensioned structures.
- for a Parabolic tendon








2
2
int
8
,
8
,
L
Pe
w
L w
Pe M M
b
b
ext
= = =

Where: wb- is the balanced load which may be equal to w or only a portion of it.

8
) (
,
2
L w w
M where
I
y M
A
P
f
b
net
net

= =

- singly harped section


The moment at the centre from the prestressing force is given as M = Pe.
The expression of Pb is calculated by equating the two expressions of M.

4

4
prestress to due M load balancing
L
Pe
P Pe
L P
due M
b
b
= =
=

I
y M
A
P
f
net
=

Where: Mnet is the moment developed by (P-Pb). For small values of u;

- Materials
Concrete- high strength > C-40 for pre-tensioning and > C-30 for post-tensioning &
class I works used.
Steel high strength steel with fpk > 1000 MPa
- Permissible Stresses
Steel: - In design, the stress pre-stressing steel at ULS is limited to 0.9
s
pk
f

and the
strain u< 0.01.
- Maximum Stress during tensioning

s
) ( 9 . 0
8 . 0
1 . 0
max ,
stress proof f
f
f
p
pk
P

- Stress after transfer (initial stress)

s
) ( 85 . 0
75 . 0
1 . 0
stress proof f
f
f
p
pk
Pi

- Stress in tendons after all losses (effective stress)
fpe < 0.6 fpk
Concrete: -
At transfer, fct < 0.5 fcki compression
ftt < fctki tension,
Where: fci - cube strength of concrete at the moment of transfer.
fctki - tensile strength of concrete at the moment of transfer.
When loaded by service loads (at working loads)
fcw < 0.4 fcu=0.5fck --- compression
ftw < fctk --- tension

Losses in PC member

The initial pre-stressing force (Pi) is less than the jacking force (Pj) because of losses due to:
- elastic shortening of concrete
- slip at the anchorage
- frictional losses
- shrinkage and creep of concrete
- relaxation of highly stressed steel

- Lump sum estimate of pre-stress losses
Loss due to Pre-tensioning Post-tensioning
- Elastic shortening of concrete 4% 1%
- Creep of concrete 6% 5%
- Shrinkage of concrete 7% 6%
- relaxation in steel 5% 6%
22% 18%
Stress in a PC- beam
Two cases must be checked.
Stresses immediately after pre-stressing

>
s
+ =

>
s
+ =
tt
DL i i
tt
ct
DL i i
f
f
S
M
S
e P
A
P
f
f
f
S
M
S
e P
A
P
f
2 2
2
1 1
1

Where: S1 & S2 - Section modulus of top & bottom section
MDL BM due to self-weight
Stresses after all losses

tw
LL DL
cw
LL DL
f
S
M M
S
Pe
A
P
f
f
S
M M
S
Pe
A
P
f
>
+
+ =
s
+
+ =
2 2
2
1 1
1
) (
) (

Where: MLL BM due to live load.