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Concrete is strong in compression, as the aggregate efficiently carries the compression load. However, it is weak in tension as the cement holding the aggregate in place can crack, allowing the structure to fail. Reinforced concrete solves these problems by adding metal reinforcing bars, glass fiber, or plastic fiber to carry tensile loads

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Reynold Kuphal

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Q: Why concrete is strong in compression and weak in tension?
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What is Reinforced cement concrete-RCC?

Concrete is very strong in compression but weak in tension. RCC is concrete with reinforcing steel bars in it. Steel is a really good material in tension. Steel carries the tensile load and thus RCC is strong in tension too. However, designers still try to ensure concrete is in compression wherever possible.


What can you reinforce concrete with?

There are different forces on a materials such as Compression and Tension. Compression is pushing a material together. Tension is pulling a material apart. Concrete has good strength in Compression, but is weak in Tension. The steel reinforcement improves the resistance to tension of the concrete.


Why steel is used to reinforce concrete explain it?

There are two main loading conditions that concrete under goes. These are Compression and Tension. Concrete is very strong in compression and is very weak in Tension (pulling apart). Concrete has so little strength to resist tension it is assumed to have no strength in tension. When civil engineers design concrete structures they can determine where the tension and compression will be located. Steel is added to give the concrete tensile strength. For Example a concrete beam when loaded from the top will experience compression on top section of the beam. The top portion of the beam will push inwards creating compression while the bottom section will pull apart creating tension. (Imagine a smile shape). :) Therefore reinforcement will be needed in the tension area (bottom).


Why is the reinforcement bars place at the bottom of the simple supported beam?

When a simply supported beam is subject to bending; the top of the beam will be subject to compression, and the bottom of the beam will be subject to tension (think about the bottom of the beam stretching as it bends i.e. tension). Concrete is strong in compression but weak in tension, so steel reinforcement is added to allow it to resist this tension and carry bending sufficiently. Note: bars are generally added to the compression side too but that's for another day.


What is the difference between the singly reinforced beam and doubly reinforced beam?

A singly reinforced beam only has steel reinforcement on the tension side (along the bottom of the cross section) where as a doubly reinforced beam has steel reinforcement on both the tension and compression sides, ie. the top and bottom of the cross section.

Related questions

What is Reinforced cement concrete-RCC?

Concrete is very strong in compression but weak in tension. RCC is concrete with reinforcing steel bars in it. Steel is a really good material in tension. Steel carries the tensile load and thus RCC is strong in tension too. However, designers still try to ensure concrete is in compression wherever possible.


Why is concrete in compression and weak under tension?

Concrete is strong in compression, as the aggregate efficiently carries the compression load. However, it is weak in tension as the cement holding the aggregate in place can crack, allowing the structure to fail. Reinforced concrete solves these problems by adding metal reinforcing bars, glass fiber, or plastic fiber to carry tensile loads


What can you reinforce concrete with?

There are different forces on a materials such as Compression and Tension. Compression is pushing a material together. Tension is pulling a material apart. Concrete has good strength in Compression, but is weak in Tension. The steel reinforcement improves the resistance to tension of the concrete.


Why are reinforcements needed for concrete?

Concrete (like stone) is very strong in compression but breaks almost instantly in tension. It is also weak in response to side forces and twisting forces. Steel bars are very strong in tension but crumple and fold instantly in compression. By putting steel reinforcement bars in concrete and pretensioning the bars before the concrete hardens creates a composite material that is strong in both compression and tension (with each material supporting the other) and also improves the response to side forces and twisting forces.


What is meant by reinforced concrete?

A reinforced concrete is a one in which steel is used. The inclusion of steel in concrete is to take up the tensile forces, since concrete is weak in tension and strong in compression. Moreover it gives warning of the structure before failure.


Why steel is used to reinforce concrete explain it?

There are two main loading conditions that concrete under goes. These are Compression and Tension. Concrete is very strong in compression and is very weak in Tension (pulling apart). Concrete has so little strength to resist tension it is assumed to have no strength in tension. When civil engineers design concrete structures they can determine where the tension and compression will be located. Steel is added to give the concrete tensile strength. For Example a concrete beam when loaded from the top will experience compression on top section of the beam. The top portion of the beam will push inwards creating compression while the bottom section will pull apart creating tension. (Imagine a smile shape). :) Therefore reinforcement will be needed in the tension area (bottom).


What is meant by reinforcement?

A reinforced concrete is a one in which steel is used. The inclusion of steel in concrete is to take up the tensile forces, since concrete is weak in tension and strong in compression. Moreover it gives warning of the structure before failure.


Why is concrete weak in tension?

Concrete is strong in compression, as the aggregate efficiently carries the compression load. However, it is weak in tension as the cement holding the aggregate in place can crack, allowing the structure to fail. Reinforced concrete solves these problems by adding metal reinforcing bars, glass fiber, or plastic fiber to carry tensile loads


How does concrete act when it is pushed and when it is pulled?

Concrete is very strong when under compression (pushed) but when when pulled, concrete is quite weak, sometimes only 10-15% as strong as when compressed. Reinforcement such as a steel bars is used in concrete to improve its strength. Additionally, concrete structures are often pre-stressed into compression by placing long bolts or rods under tension to squeeze the concrete so that it is still compressed even under load.


What are advantages and disadvantages of Concrete?

Concrete: *Pros: Extremely strong in compression, can be poured into a form on-site, or pre-fabricated. Can be poured and cured under water, if necessary *Cons: Very weak under tension, though this can be moderated with steel reinforcement


What is reinforced concrete?

Reinforced concrete is concrete reinforced with steel bars because although concrete is very strong in compression (depending on its components) it is very weak in tension and the steel bars make up for the required tensile strength.


Why iron metal is used in building construction?

It deals with the tension and compression of the concrete. Concrete is a really great material when in comes to compression. It has a high strength in compression but little in the way of tension. You can test this for your self. Get a small unreinforced piece of concrete and pull it apart it ( put it in tension) and it breaks fairy easily. Now, try pushing together (put it in compression) and it doesn't break anywhere near as easily, if you can break it at all. Steel is the opposite. It has more strength in tension than in compression. Putting steel bars in concrete allows you to have good strength in compression and in tension. In an easy way to understand it and get the general idea, when the reinforced concrete is under tension, the steel bars take over, and when the reinforced concrete is under compression, the concrete takes over.