Capacity and failure modes of restrained hollow core slabs taking into account compressive membrane action

Abstract

The formation of compressive membrane action in restrained precast concrete hollow core slabs is investigated, and how it affects the load bearing capacity and failure mode under excessive loading. To this end, attention is oriented to a recently completed experimental campaign specifically aimed at quantifying this phenomenon in real‐scale hollow core slabs. The outcomes of this experimental campaign are then analyzed using a validated finite element model, to further study the effects of compressive membrane action on the structural behavior of hollow core slabs. From the numerical evaluations, it can be concluded that the ultimate capacity and failure mode of restrained hollow core slabs strongly depend on the restraint conditions, as well as the span‐to‐depth ratio. The results also indicate that in some cases the failure is caused by crushing of concrete in the top flange, which is typically not observed in case of simply supported boundary conditions. Additionally, the influence of the inherent uncertainties associated with material properties and geometry on the ultimate capacity and failure mode of restrained hollow core slabs is investigated. Probabilistic model evaluations are performed for a wide range of boundary conditions. The results indicate a very high influence of the uncertainty on the concrete tensile strength on the membrane action in precast hollow core slabs.