ANALYSIS OF PRESTRESS

BENDING STRESSES

ASSUMPTIONS

Concrete is
materials

homogeneous

elastic

Within the range of working stresses,

both the materials behave elastically

Plane sections before bending is

assumed to remain plane, which
implies
linear
stress-strain
relationship across the depth of the
beam.

STRESSES DUE TO
PRESTRESS
Stresses due to pre-stress

alone
a) Action of direct load
b) Bending resulting from an

eccentrically applied load

Notations
P = Pre-stressing force
e = Cccentricity of prestressing force
M= p.e = Moment
A= Cross sectional area of the concrete
member
I = moment of inertia of area of section
about its centroid
Zt and Zb = Section modulus of the top
and bottom fibers
Yt and yb = Distance of the top and
bottom fibers from
the centroid of

Stresses Due to Pre-stress

Resultant stresses due to Prestress, DL and LL

Problem
A pre-stressed concrete rectangular beam of
size 500mm x 750mm has a simple span of
7.30 m and is loaded by a uniform load of
45kN/m including its own weight. The prestressing tendon is located at a distance 145
mm from the C.G.C. And produces an effective
pre-stress of 1620kN. Compute fiber stresses in
the concrete at the mid span section. Show the
resultant stress distribution.

Losses of pre-stress
The initial pre-stress in the concrete undergoes a gradual

reduction with time from the stage of transfer due to various

reasons. This is generally referred to as Loss of Pre-Stress.
A reasonably good estimate of the magnitude of pre-stress is

necessary from the point of view of design.

The losses are broadly classified into two groups, immediate

and time-dependent.
The

immediate losses occur during prestressing of the

tendons and the transfer of prestress to the concrete
member.

The time-dependent losses occur during the service life of

the prestressed member.

Losses of prestress
Types of
Losses
Short
term
losses

Long term
losses

Causes of various Losses

Loss due to Elastic Deformation

Pre-tensioned Members
When the tendons are cut and the prestressing
force is transferred to the member, the
concrete undergoes immediate shortening due
to the prestress.
The tendon also shortens by the same
amount, which leads to the loss of prestress.
Post-tensioned Members
If there is only one tendon, there is no loss
because the applied prestress is recorded after
the elastic shortening of the member.
For more than one tendon, if the tendons are
stretched equentially, there is loss in a tendon

ELASTIC SHORTENING OF PRE-TENSIONED

MEMBER

 The loss of stress due to elastic deformation of

concrete depends on the modular ratio and the

average stress in the concrete at the level of
steel.
The quantification of the losses is explained

below.

Friction Losses in Pre-stress

The friction generated at the interface of concrete and

steel during the stretching of a curved tendon in a posttensioned member, leads to a drop in the prestress along
the member from the stretching end.
The friction is generated due to the curvature of the

tendon. The following figure shows a typical profile (laying

pattern) of the tendon in a continuous beam.
In addition to friction, the stretching has to overcome the

wobble of the tendon.

The wobble refers to the change in position of the tendon

along the duct. The losses due to friction and wobble are
grouped together under friction

Friction Curvature Loss

When the jacking force is applied, there is a
friction between the tendon and the duct
that prevents the interior parts of the
beam/slab from feeling the full force:

Friction Wobble Loss

This loss is due to unintentional variation
of the duct from the prescribed profile

Loss due to Friction

Coefficient of friction ()
Curvature of the tendon (d)
P0 = the pre-stress at the stretching end after any loss
due to elastic shortening
The amount of pre-stressing force (P)

Losses due to shrinkage of concrete

The shrinkage of concrete in pre-stressed

members results in a shortening of

tensioned wires and hence contributes to
the loss of stress.
The shrinkage of concrete is influenced by
the type of cement and aggregates and
the method of curing.
Primary cause of shrinkage is highere at
the surface of the members.
The residual shrinkage strain will be larger
in pre-tensioned members after transfer of
pre-stress in comparision with posttensioned members.

Loss of prestress due to shrinkage as per

IS:1343-1980.
total residual shrinkage strain (s)
(s) = 300 x (10)-6
(s) = [200 x (10)-6]/ log(t+2))
where t= age of concrete at transfer in
days.
Loss of stress = s x Es

LOSS DUE TO CREEP OF CONCRETE

Creep of concrete is defined as the increase in

deformation with time under constant load. Due to the

creep of concrete, the prestress in the tendon is reduced
with time.
The loss of pre stress due to creep of concrete can be
estimated if the magnitude of ultimate creep strain or
creep co-efficient is known.
1) Ultimate creep strain method
the loss of stress in steel due to creep of concrete = cc
fc Es.
cc= ultimate creep strainfor sustained prestress
fc = compressive stress in concrete at the level of steel.
Es = modulus of elasticity of steel.

2) Creep Co-efficient Method

Loss of stress in steel = mfc

Loss due to relaxation o steel

Relaxation of steel is defined as the

decrease in stress with time under constant

strain. Due to the relaxation of steel, the
prestress in the tendon is reduced with
time. The relaxation depends on the type of
steel, initial prestress (fpi) and the
temperature.

Most of the codes provide for the loss of

stress due to relaxation of steel as a

percentage of the initial stress in steel.
The indian standard recommends a value
varying from 0 to 90N/mm2 for stress in
wires varying from 0.5fpu to 0.8 fpu

LOSS DUE TO ANCHORAGE

SLIP
In most of the post tensioning systems,

when the cable is tensioned and the jack is

released to transfer pre-stress to concrete.
The friction wedges, employed to grip the

wires, slip over a small distance before the

wires are firmly housed between the
wedges.
The magnitude of slip depends upon the

type of wedge and the stress in the wires.

LOSS DUE TO ANCHORAGE

SLIP

The magnitude of the loss of stress due

to the slip in anchorage is

P/A = (Es)/L
= slip of anchorage
L = length of the cable
A = Cross sectional area of the cable
Es = Modulus of elasticity of steel in N/mm2
P = Pre-stressing force in the tendon

Total losses allowed for in

design
% Loss of Pre stress
Type of loss
Elastic
shortening
Creep of
concrete
Shrinkage of
concrete
Creep in steel
total

Pre tensionong
4

Post
tensioning
1

8
25

8
20