Experimental Evaluation of Flexural Strength and Ductility of One-Way Concrete Slab Panels Reinforced with Welded Wires and Deformed Bars

Abstract

This study evaluates the flexural strength and ductility of one-way concrete slab panels reinforced with deformed bar and welded wire under the application of pure bending. An experimental database of flexural strength and ductility for a set of three slab panels reinforced with 10 mm deformed bar, three panels with 6 mm welded wire reinforcement (WWR), and three panels with 8 mm WWR has been developed, with each slab panel having a dimension of 762 mm by 2286 mm. The deflection and ductility factors of the specimens are investigated. The results show that the slab panels reinforced with 6 mm WWR exhibit less vertical deflection at fracture in comparison to those with 8 mm WWR. Welded wire reinforced slab panels demonstrated uniformly distributed crack propagation in comparison to deformed bars. In addition, the slab panels with 8 mm WWR exhibit higher flexural strength than the 6 mm WWR reinforced panels. The 10 mm deformed bar-reinforced slab panels exhibited greater deflection at fracture compared to WWR specimens. The reason for the lower ductile behavior of slab panels with 6 mm WWR is due to the fact that 6 mm WWR, produced locally in Bangladesh, is manufactured by the cold-drawn method and has a lower ductility in compliance with BDS ISO 6935 Class A, which does not conform to ASTM A1064. Both 8 mm WWR and 10 mm deformed bars conform to BDS ISO 6935 Class D and ASTM A1064. Hence, the 6 mm WWR with Class A ductility is not recommended for reinforced concrete (RC) slab panels based on the experimental results conducted in this study, whereas the 8 mm WWR and the 10 mm deformed bar with Class D ductility are suitable for structural use as recommended in ACI 318.

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