Study of cracking in reinforced mortar channel slabs for use in residential floors

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Abstract

The importance of the cracking criterion in cementitious materials or reinforced mortar, together with the insufficient experimental study of channel cross-section laminar elements reinforced with bars and wire mesh(es) of steel, show the need to carry out more research in this regard. Among the main factors that influence cracking are those related to reinforcement, however, at present no study has been identified on the optimal geometric arrangement of the reinforcement with mesh(es) in this type of elements, in order to guarantee compliance with the cracking limit state, which is the purpose of this work. The study is carried out on channel slabs considering their use in residential floors. To obtain the maximum crack opening, the semi-empirical expression developed by Desayi and Ganesan is used and the flexural strength is estimated from a computational model calibrated with the experimental tests carried out by these researchers. The results show that in order to comply with the maximum permissible crack width indicated by the ACI 549 1R-18 standard, the use of mesh(es) for the reinforcement of these elements is mandatory. In addition, minimum values ​​of specific surface area and volume factor are recommended that the mesh(es) must guarantee for the reinforcement of floor elements with the characteristics analyzed.