CHAPTER 8c: DEVELOPMENT LENGTH OF PRESTRESSING STRANDS

- Bond is the primary mechanism by which the force in a prestressing strand is

transferred to the surrounding concrete in the end portion of a pretensioned
concrete beam.
- The distance from the end of the member over which the effective prestressing
force develops is referred to as the transfer length.
- The flexural bond length is the additional bond lengt required to develop the
strand stress from effective prestress to the ultimate stress at the ultimate flexural
strength of the beam. The sum of these two lengths referred to as the
development length
( )D f f D
f
L
se ps
se
d
+ =
3

where:
D
f
se
3
- represents the transfer length
( )D f f
se ps

- represents the flexural bond length
AASHTO 9.27.1 requires that prestressing strands be bonded to the surrounding concrete
beyond the critical section for a minimum development length. This minimum length,
given by the above expression, is written in simplified form as AASHTO Eq. 9.32
D f f L
se su d
|
.
|

\
|
=
3
2
*

where:
D - nominal diameter of strand, in.
*
su
f
- average stress in prestressing at ultimate load

se
f - effective steel prestress after losses
Requirements for the development length for prestressing steel are currently under
research. Based on the results of tests to failure of twenty full scale AASHTO Type I
beams, the following expression for the development length has been suggested.
( ) D f f
f
L
se ps
si
d
(

+ = 5 . 1
3

where:
D - nominal diameter of strand, in.
( )D f f
se ps

- represents the flexural bond length multiplied by 1.5

si
f - prestressing stress at transfer


ALLOWABLE STRESSES
Prestressing Steel
Stress at anchorages after seating
Stress at service load after losses
Concrete
Temporary stresses before losses due to creep and shrinkage
Stress at service load after losses have occurred
Prestressing Steel
Allowable stresses for presstressing steel and for concrete are outlined in this section.
The following stresses for prestressing steel are permitted in the specifications
(AASHTO 9.15.1)
Stress at anchorages after seating
Pretensioned members
-Stress-relieved strands 0.70fs
-Low-relaxation strands 0.75fs
Post-tensioned mebers
0.70fs
where: fs = ultimate strength of prestressing steel
Slight overstressing up to 0.85fs for short periods of time may be permitted to offset
seating losses and to accommodate the stress increase due to a drop in temperature,
provided that the stress after seating does not exceed the above values.
Overstressing up to 0.90fy for short periods of time may be permitted to offset seating
and friction losses provided that the stress at the anchorage does not exceed the above
value. The stress at the end of the seating-loss zone must not exceed 0.83fy immediately
after seating.
Stress at service load after losses
0.80fy
Includes bonded prestressed strands
DEFLECTIONS OF PRE-STRESSED CONCRETE
Pre-stressed Concrete Members
Pre-stressed concrete beams typically are more slender than reinforced concrete
beams, because of high span-to-depth ratios that are characteristics of pre-
stressed concrete.
For pre-stressed concrete bridges, the importance of functionality implies, in
addition to other considerations, that the design of a structure should primarily be
performance-based. Deflection, slenderness and flexibility of structure, and
fatigue are three elements of the design matrix that are related to the performance
of a bridge structure during its service life. They form a part of the design criteria,
generally known as the serviceability criteria.
Dead load deflections of both reinforced and prestressed concrete girders are
affected by several factors, such as the type, quality, and proportions of materials
in concrete, the amount and placement of reinforcing steel, the method of curing,
the age and strength of concrete, the time history of loading, and other factors [
Tadros,Ghali, and Dilger, 1975; Bazant and Panula,1980]. It is believed that by
properly controlling these factors, deflections can be predicted with reasonable
accuracy.
Total Deflection of Pre-stressed Concrete Beam
Deflections due to dead load can be calculated using the moment of inertia of
gross section. Since under the service load conditions the member cross section
remains uncracked because of the presence of pre-stressing force.
The pre-stressing force creates additional deflection in beams, usually upward,
with positive eccentricity.
Instantaneous deflection is elastic and is caused by transient loads such as live loads,
and it does not vary with time.
Long-term deflection a complex phenomenon governed by several parameters, is
caused by sustained loads and is increases with time due to the creep phenomenon.
Deflection Calculations
Deflection calculations for pre-stressed members involve several steps owing to
the presence of pre-stressing force. The beams would generally have a net initial
upward deflection generally referred to as camber, resulting from a combined
effect of dead load and the pre-stressing force, before the application of live load.
Deflections of prestressed concrete beams are calculated by the conventional
methods available in texts on strength of materials. This is based on the premise
that the sections are prismatic; made of materials that are homogeneous,
isotropic, and elastic; and follow Hookes Law. These assumptions are obviously
approximations, and estimated deflections of pre-stressed concrete beams are
replete with uncertainties.

According to Naaman [1982]
( )
( )
( ) t
c
c
ce
C
t E
t E
+
=
1

where:
E
ce
(t) - effective elastic modulus of concrete as influenced by creep
t - age of concrete in days
C
c
() - creep coefficient at time t
- time after loading = t t
A

t
A
- age of concrete loading
Proposed by Trost [1967] and modified by Bazant [1972]

( )
( )
( ) ( )
A c A
A c
A ce
t t C t t
t E
t t E
, , 1
,
_ +
=

where:
E
ce
(t,t
A
) - age-adjusted effective modulus at time t when loading occurs
at time t

E
c
(t
A
) - instantaneous elastic modulus at time t
A

(t,t
A
) - aging coefficient at time t
C
C
(t,t
A
) - creep coefficient at time t for a concrete member loaded at
time t
A

Moment of Inertia (I
e
) suggested by [Branson,1968, 1977; Naaman and
Siriaksorn,1979a,b]
g cr
a
cr
g
a
cr
e
I I
M
M
I
M
M
I s
(
(

|
|
.
|

\
|
+
|
|
.
|

\
|
=
3 3
1

( )
g cr g
a
cr
cr e
I I I
M
M
I I s
|
|
.
|

\
|
+ =

where:
cr
I - moment of inertia of cracked section
g
I
- gross moment of inertia
cr
M - craking moment of inertia for the beam at the section of maximum moment

a
M
a
M - max. moment acting on the span at the stage for which the deflection is
computed (essentially same as
max
M at section for max. moment)

PCI-Multipliers Method [PCI,1985]
Allows one to include both the creep effect and other factors, such as the
presence of sustained pre-compression and composite topping.
ps s
ps s
A A
A A C
C
/ 1
/
1
2
+
+
=

where:

1
C - multiplier from table 7.19

s
A - area of nonprestressed reinforcing

ps
A - area of prestressing steel
Degenkolb[1977] has suggested the following approximate percentages of the ultimate
deflection at various ages for cast-in place concrete box girder bridges:
- 25 percent when falsework released continuous span
- 33 percent when falsework released simple span
- 70 percent at 6 months
- 82 percent at 1 year
- 90 percent at 2 year
- 93 percent at 3 year
- 95 percent at 4 year
- 100 percent at ultimate
AASHTO-LRFD Specifications[1944,p.5-42]
Give the following multipliers, Cc, depending on whether the gross moment
inertia (Ig) or the effective moment of inertia (Ie) is used for computing the
instantaneous deflections.
Cc = 4.0 (for Ig)
Cc = 3.0 1.2(As/As) 1.6 (for Ie)
where:
As - area of compression reinforcement
As - area of non-pre-stressed tension reinforcement