4.

Beams
Introduction
The introduction of European standards to UK
construction is a significant event. The ten design
standards, known as the Eurocodes, will affect
all design and construction activities as current
British standards for design are due to be
withdrawn in 2010.
This publication is part of the series of guides
entitled How to design concrete structures using
Eurocode 2. Their aim is to make the transition to
Eurocode 2: Design of concrete structures as easy
as possible by drawing together in one place key
information and commentary required for the
design of typical concrete elements.
The cement and concrete industry recognised that
a substantial effort was required to ensure that
the UK design profession would be able to use
Eurocode 2 quickly, effectively, efficiently and
with confidence. With support from government,
consultants and relevant industry bodies, the
Concrete Industry Eurocode 2 Group (CIEG) was
formed in 1999 and this Group has provided the
guidance for a co-ordinated and collaborative
approach to the introduction of Eurocode 2. As
a result, a range of resources is to be made
available through The Concrete Centre to help
designers during the transition period (see back
cover for details).
How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2
4. Beams
R M Moss BSc, PhD, CEng, MICE, MIStructE O Brooker BEng, CEng, MICE, MIStructE
Designing to Eurocode 2
This guide covers the analysis and design of concrete beams to Eurocode 2
1
which is essentially the same as with BS 8110
2
. However, the layout and
content of Eurocode 2 may appear unusual to designers familiar with BS 8110.
Eurocode 2 does not contain the derived formulae or specific guidance on
determining moments and shear forces. This has arisen because it has
been European practice to give principles in the codes and for the detailed
application to be presented in other sources such as textbooks.
The first guide in this series, How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2:
Introduction to Eurocodes
3
, highlighted the key differences between Eurocode 2
and BS 8110, including terminology.
It should be noted that values from the UK National Annex (NA) have been
used throughout this guide, including values that are embedded in derived
formulae (derivations can be found at www.eurocode2.info). A list of symbols
related to beam design is given at the end of this guide.
Design procedure
A procedure for carrying out the detailed design of beams is shown in Table 1.
This assumes that the beam dimensions have previously been determined
during conceptual design. Concept designs prepared assuming detailed design
would be to BS 8110 may be continued through to detailed design using
Eurocode 2. More detailed advice on determining design life, actions, material
properties, methods of analysis, minimum concrete cover for durability and
control of crack widths can be found in the accompanying guide How to
design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Getting started
4
.
Fire resistance
Eurocode 2, Part 12: Structural fire design
6
, gives a choice of advanced,
simplified or tabular methods for determining the fire resistance. Using tables
is the fastest method for determining the minimum dimensions and cover
for beams. There are, however, some restrictions and if these apply further
guidance on the advanced and simplified methods can be obtained from
specialist literature. Rather than giving a minimum cover, the tabular method
is based on nominal axis distance, a (see Figure 1). This is the distance from
the centre of the main reinforcing bar to the top or bottom surface of the
Continues page 3
2
How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2
Step Task Further guidance
How to guide Standard
1 Determine design life Getting started NA to BS EN 1990 Table NA.2.1
2 Assess actions on the beam Getting started BS EN 1991 (10 parts) and National Annexes
3 Determine which combinations of actions apply Introduction to Eurocodes NA to BS EN 1990 Tables NA.A1.1 and NA.A1.2 (B)
4 Determine loading arrangements Getting started NA to BS EN 199211
5 Assess durability requirements and determine concrete strength Getting started BS 8500: 2002
6 Check cover requirements for appropriate fire resistance period Getting started and Fire resistance Approved Document B. BS EN 199211: Section 5
section of this guide
7 Calculate min. cover for durability, fire and bond requirements Getting started BS EN 199211 Cl 4.4.1
8 Analyse structure to obtain critical moments and shear forces Getting started and Table 3 of this guide BS EN 199211 section 5
9 Design flexural reinforcement See Flexure section of this guide BS EN 199211 section 6.1
10 Check shear capacity See Vertical shear section of this guide BS EN 199211 section 6.2
11 Check deflection See Deflection section of this guide BS EN 199211 section 7.4
12 Check spacing of bars Getting started BS EN 199211 section 7.3
Note
NA = National Annex
Table 1
Beam design procedure
Table 2
Minimum dimensions and axis distances for beams made with reinforced concrete for fire resistance
Figure 3
Simplified rectangular stress block for
concrete up to class C50/60 from Eurocode 2
d
h
x
Section
A
s2
A
s
Neutral axis
b
d
2
Strain

sc
0.8x
F
sc
f
cd
Stress block and forces
z
F
c
F
st
Figure 1
Section through structural member,
showing nominal axis distances a and a
sd
b
a
a
sd
h > b
Standard fire resistance Minimum dimensions (mm)
Possible combinations of a and b
min
where a is the average axis distance and b
min
is the width of the beam
Simply supported beams Continuous beams
A B C D E F G H
R60 b
min
= 120 160 300 300 120 200
a = 40 35 30 25 25 12
a
R90 b
min
= 150 200 300 400 150 250
a = 55 45 40 35 35 25
R120 b
min
= 200 240 300 500 200 300 450 500
a = 65 60 55 50 45 35 35 30
R240 b
min
= 280 350 500 700 280 500 650 700
a = 90 80 75 70 75 60 60 50
Notes
1 This table is taken from BS EN 199212 Tables 5.5 and 5.6.
2 The axis distance, a
sd
, from the side of the beam to the corner bar should be a +10 mm except where b
min
is greater than the values in columns C and F.
3 The table is valid only if the detailing requirements (see note 4) are observed and, in normal temperature design, redistribution of bending moments does not exceed 15%.
4 For fire resistance of R90 and above, for a distance of 0.3l
eff
from the centre line of each intermediate support, the area of top reinforcement should not be less than the following:
A
s,req
(x) = A
s,req
( 0)( 1 2.5( x/ l
eff
) )
where:
x is the distance of the section being considered from the centre line of the support.
A
s,req
( 0) is the area of reinforcement required for normal temperature design.
A
s,req
(x) is the minimum area of reinforcement required at the section being considered but not less than that required for normal temperature design.
l
eff
is the greater of the effective lengths of the two adjacent spans.
5 For fire resistances R120 R240, the width of the beam at the first intermediate support should be at least that in column F, if both the following conditions exist:
a there is no fixity at the end support; and
b the acting shear at normal temperature V
sd
> 0.67 V
Rd,max
.
Key
a Normally the requirements of BS EN 199211 will determine the cover.
3
4. Beams
Carry out analysis of beam to determine
design moments (M) (see Table 3)
Obtain lever arm z from Table 5 or use
Calculate tension reinforcement
required from
Check minimum reinforcement
requirements (see Table 6)
No compression reinforcement required
Check maximum reinforcement requirements A
s, max
= 0.04 A
c
for tension or compression reinforcement outside lap locations
Determine K from Table 4 or
K = 0.60d 0.18d
2
0.21
where d 1.0
Outside scope of this guide
Compression reinforcement
required
Calculate lever arm z from
START
Concrete class
C50/60?
Is K K ?
Yes
Yes
No
No
Determine K from K =
M
bd
2
f
ck
Calculate compression
reinforcement required from
where
Figure 2
Procedure for determining flexural reinforcement
Table 3
Bending moment and shear coefficients for beams
member. It is a nominal (not minimum) dimension, so the designer
should ensure that:
a c
nom
+ f
link
+ f
bar
/2 and a
sd
= a + 10 mm
Table 2 gives the minimum dimensions for beams to meet the
standard fire periods.
Flexure
The design procedure for flexural design is given in Figure 2; this includes
derived formulae based on the simplified rectangular stress block from
Eurocode 2. Table 3 may be used to determine bending moments and
shear forces for beams, provided the notes to the table are observed.
Table 4
Values for K
A
s2
=
(KK) f
ck
bd
2
f
sc
(dd
2
)
Calculate tension
reinforcement required from
f
ck
f
ctm
Minimum percentage (0.26 f
ctm
/ f
yk
a
)
25 2.6 0.13%
28 2.8 0.14%
30 2.9 0.15%
32 3.0 0.16%
35 3.2 0.17%
40 3.5 0.18%
45 3.8 0.20%
50 4.1 0.21%
1 + 1 3.53K z =
2
d
[ ]
1 + 1 3.53K 0.95d z =
2
d
[ ]
A
s, min
= where f
ck
25
f
yk
0.26 f
ctm
b
t
d
A
s
=
f
yd
z
M
A
s
= + A
s2
f
yd
z
Kf
ck
bd
2
f
yd
f
sc
f
sc
= 700 f
yd
x
x d
2
[ ]
Moment Shear
Outer support 25% of span moment 0.45 (G + Q)
Near middle of end span 0.900 Gl + 0.100 Ql
At first interior support 0.094 (G + Q) l 0.63 (G + Q)
a
At middle of interior spans 0.066 Gl + 0.086 Ql
At interior supports 0.075 (G + Q) l 0.50 (G + Q)
Key
a 0.55 (G + Q) may be used adjacent to the interior span.
Notes
1 Redistribution of support moments by 15% has been included.
2 Applicable to 3 or more spans only and where Q
k
G
k
.
3 Minimum span 0.85 longest span.
4 l is the span, G is the total of the ULS permanent actions, Q is the total
of the ULS variable actions.
% redistribution d (redistribution ratio) K
0 1.00 0.205
5 0.95 0.193
10 0.90 0.180
15 0.85 0.166
20 0.80 0.151
25 0.75 0.136
K z/d
0.01 0.950
a
0.02 0.950
a
0.03 0.950
a
0.04 0.950
a
0.05 0.954
0.06 0.944
0.07 0.934
0.08 0.924
0.09 0.913
0.10 0.902
K z/d
0.11 0.891
0.12 0.880
0.13 0.868
0.14 0.856
0.15 0.843
0.16 0.830
0.17 0.816
0.18 0.802
0.19 0.787
0.20 0.771
Key
a Limiting z to 0.95d is not a requirement of Eurocode 2, but is considered to be good practice.
Key
a Assuming f
yk
= 500 MPa
Table 5
z/d for singly reinforced rectangular sections
Table 6
Minimum percentage of required reinforcement
4
How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2
Figure 5
Procedure for determining vertical shear reinforcement
Yes (cot y = 2.5)
No No
START
Determine v
Ed
where:
v
Ed
= shear stress at d from face of support [v
Ed
= V
Ed
/(b
w
z) = V
Ed
/(0.9 b
w
d)]
Determine the concrete strut capacity v
Rd, max cot y = 2.5
from Table 7
Redesign
section
Determine y from:
Calculate area of shear reinforcement:
Check maximum spacing for vertical shear reinforcement:
s
l, max
= 0.75 d
Table 7
Minimum and maximum concrete strut capacity in terms of stress
f
ck
v
Rd,max cot y = 2.5
v
Rd,max cot y = 1.0
20 2.54 3.68
25 3.10 4.50
28 3.43 4.97
30 3.64 5.28
32 3.84 5.58
35 4.15 6.02
40 4.63 6.72
45 5.08 7.38
50 5.51 8.00
Figure 4
Strut inclination method
Longitudinal
reinforcement in tension
Vertical shear
reinforcement
Concrete strut in compression
y
Eurocode 2 offers various methods for determining the stress-strain
relationship of concrete. For simplicity and familiarity the method
presented here is the simplified rectangular stress block, which is
similar to that found in BS 8110 (see Figure 3).
Eurocode 2 gives recommendations for the design of concrete up to
class C90/105. However, for concrete greater than class C50/60, the
stress block is modified. It is important to note that concrete strength
is based on the cylinder strength and not the cube strength (i.e. for
class C30/37 the cylinder strength ( f
ck
) is 30 MPa, whereas the cube
strength is 37 MPa).
Vertical shear
Eurocode 2 introduces the strut inclination method for shear capacity
checks. In this method the shear is resisted by concrete struts acting in
compression and shear reinforcement acting in tension.
The angle of the concrete strut varies, depending on the shear force
applied (see Figure 4). The procedure for determining the shear capacity
of a section is shown in Figure 5 (which includes UK NA values) and is
in terms of shear stress in the vertical plane rather than a vertical force
as given in Eurocode 2. Where shear reinforcement is required, then
the angle of the concrete strut should be calculated. For many typical
beams the minimum angle of strut will apply (when cot y = 2.5 or y =
21.8) i.e. for class C30/37 concrete the strut angle exceeds 21.8 only
when the shear stress is greater than 3.27 N/mm
2
(refer to Table 7).
As with BS 8110, there is a maximum permitted shear capacity, v
Rd,max
,
(when cot y =1.0 or y = 45), but this is not restricted to 5 MPa as in
BS 8110.
Deflection
Eurocode 2 has two alternative methods for checking deflection,
either a limiting span-to-depth ratio may be used or the theoretical
deflection can be assessed using the expressions given in the Code.
The latter is dealt with in detail in another guide in this series, How to
design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Deflection
6
.
The span-to-depth ratios should ensure that deflection is limited to
span/250 and this is the procedure presented in Figure 6.
Flanged beams
Flanged beams can be treated in much the same way as in BS 8110.
The main differences compared with BS 8110 are that the assessment
of the flange width is more sophisticated (see Figures 9 and 10) and
that Eurocode 2 contains a check to confirm that the shear stress at
=
s
A
sw
y = 0.5 sin
-1
0.18 f
ck
(1 f
ck
/250)
v
Ed
[ ]
0.9d f
ywd
cot y
v
Ed
b
w
Continues page 7
Is
v
Ed
< v
Rd, max coty = 2.5
?
Is
v
Ed
< v
Rd, max coty = 1.0
?
(see Table 7)
Yes
12
14
16
18
20
22
24
26
28
30
32
34
36
S
p
a
n

t
o

d
e
p
t
h

r
a
t
i
o

(
l
/
d
)
0.40% 0.60% 0.80% 1.00% 1.20% 1.40% 1.60% 1.80% 2.00%
f
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
= 50
f = 45
f = 40
f = 35
f = 32
f = 30
f = 28
f = 25
f = 20
f
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
ck
= 50
f = 45
f = 40
f = 35
f = 32
f = 30
f = 28
f = 25
f = 20
5
4. Beams
Figure 6
Procedure for assessing deflection
Is basic l/d x K x F1 x F2 x F3 Actual l/d ?
Increase
A
s,prov
Determine Factor 3 (F3)
F3 = 310/s
s
Where s
s
= Stress in reinforcement at serviceability
limit state (see Figure 8)
s
s
may assumed to be 310 MPa (i.e. F3 = 1.0)
Note: A
s,prov
1.5 A
s,reqd
(UK National Annex)
Determine basic l/d and K from Figure 7
Check complete
Determine Factor 1 (F1)
For ribbed or waffle slabs
F1 = 1 0.1 ((b
f
/b
w
) 1) 0.8

(b
f
is flange breadth and b
w
is rib breadth)
Otherwise F1 = 1.0
Determine Factor 2 (F2)
Where the slab span exceeds 7 m and it supports
brittle partitions, F2 = 7/l
eff
1.0
Otherwise F2 = 1.0
No
Yes
START

The Eurocode is ambiguous regarding linear interpolation. It is understood that

it was the intention of the drafting committee that linear interpolation be used
and this is in line with current UK practice.
Figure 8
Determination of steel stress
To determine stress in the reinforcement (s
s
), calculate the ratio
G
k
/Q
k
, read up the graph to the appropriate curve and read across
to determine s
su
.
s
s
can be calculated from the expression: s
s
= s
su
A
s,req
A
s,prov
1
d
( ( ) )
Ratio G
k
/Q
k
U
n
m
o
d
i
f
i
e
d

s
t
e
e
l

s
t
r
e
s
s
,

s
s
u
180
200
220
240
260
280
300
320
1.0 2.0 3.0 4.0
c
2
= 0.8, g
G
= 1.35
c
2

= 0.6, g
G

= 1.35
c
2
= 0.3, g
G

= 1.35
c
2

= 0.2, g
G

= 1.35
c
2

= 0.6, g
G

= 1.25
c
2
= 0.3, g
G

= 1.25
c
2
= 0.2, g
G

= 1.25
Figure 7
Basic span-to-depth ratios
Notes
1 For two-way spanning slabs, the check should be
carried out on the basis of the shorter span.
2 This graph assumes simply supported span condition
(K = 1.0).
K = 1.5 for interior span condition
K = 1.3 for end span condition
K = 0.4 for cantilevers.
3 Compression reinforcement, r, has been taken as 0.
4 Curves based on the following expressions:
where r r
0
and
where r > r
0
.
11+ + 3.2 1 = K
r
f
ck
r
0
1.5
d
l
f
ck
r
r
0
[ ( ) ]
11+ + = K
(
r r
)
f
ck
r
0
1.5
d
l
12
f
ck
r
0
r

[ ]
1.5
6
How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2
Figure 11
Procedure for determining flexural capacity of flanged beams
Figure 9
Definition of l
o
, for calculation of effective flange width
Figure 10
Effective flange width parameters
l
0
= 0.85 l
1
l
0
= 0.15 (l
1
+ l
2
)
l
1
l
3
l
2
l
0
= 0.7 l
2
l
0
= 0.15 l
2
+ l
3
b
1
b
1
b
2
b
2
b
w

b
eff

b
eff,2
b
b
eff,1

START
Is x 1.25h
f
?
Is K
f
K ?
Carry out analysis of beam to determine design
moments, M (see Table 3)
Neutral axis in
flange. Design
as rectangular
section (Figure 2)
and then check
longitudinal shear
(Figure 14)
Redesign section
Determine l
0
(see Figure 9) and b
eff
from:
b
eff
= (b
w
+ b
eff1
+ b
eff2
) where
b
eff1
= (0.2b
1
+ 0.1 l
0
) 0.2 l
0
b
1
b
eff2
= (0.2b
2
+ 0.1 l
0
) 0.2 l
0
b
2
Note: The flange width at the support will be
different from that at mid-span.
For symbols refer to Figures 9 and 10
Determine K from Table 4 or
K = 0.60d 0.18d
2
0.21 where d 1.0
Calculate depth to neutral axis x from:
x = 2.5 (d z)
Calculate lever arm z from
Neutral axis in web
Calculate moment capacity of flange from:
M
R,f
= 0.57 f
ck
(b
eff
b
w
) h
f
(d 0.5h
f
)
Calculate area of reinforcement required from Check longitudinal
shear
(see Figure 14)
Yes
No
Yes
No
Determine K from K =
where b = b
w
at support
b = b
eff
in span
1 + 1 3.53K 0.95d z =
2
d
[ ]
bd
2
f
ck
M
A
s
= +
f
ywd
(d 0.5 h
f
)
M
R,f
f
ywd
M M
R,f
K
f
= and
f
ck
b
w
d
2
M M
R,f
Figure 12
Placing of tension reinforcement in flanged cross section
Figure 13
Notations for the connection between flange and web
A
A
F
d
F
d
S
f
b
eff
A
sf
h
f
F
d
+ F
d
D
F
d
+ F
d
D
Dx
b
w
y
f
Longitudinal bar
anchored beyond
this projected point
Compressive struts
b
eff
b
eff1
b
eff2
A
s
b
w
h
f
Selected symbols for slabs are shown overleaf.
7
4. Beams
Figure 14
Procedure for determining longitudinal shear capacity of flanged beams
Table 8
Concrete strut capacity for longitudinal shear in flanged beams
f
ck
v
Rd,max
(when cot y = 2.5)
Flange in tension Flange in compression
20 2.94 3.59
25 3.60 4.39
28 3.98 4.85
30 4.22 5.15
32 4.46 5.44
35 4.82 5.87
40 5.38 6.55
45 5.90 7.20
50 6.40 7.80
Yes
No No
No
Calculate the longitudinal shear stress
from: v
Ed
= DF
d
/(h
f
Dx)
(see Figure 13)
Determine the concrete strut capacity
from Table 8 or from:
v
Rd
= 0.195 f
ck
(1 f
ck
/250)
Calculate area of transverse reinforcement from:
Yes (cot y
f
= 2.5) Yes (cot y
f
= 2.0)
Is v
RD
> v
Ed
? Is v
RD
> v
Ed
?
Is length of
flange under consideration
in tension?
Determine y
f
from:
Determine the concrete
strut capacity from Table 8
or from:
v
Rd
= 0.16 f
ck
(1 f
ck
/250)
=
s
A
sf
y
f
=0.5sin
-1
0.2f
ck
(1 f
ck
/250)
v
Ed
[ ]
f
yd
cot y
f
v
Ed
h
f
the interface of the flange and web can be resisted by the transverse
reinforcement in the flange. The position of the neutral axis should
be determined, and then the area of reinforcement can be calculated
depending whether it lies in the flange or web (see Figure 11).
At supports the tension reinforcement to resist hogging moments
should be distributed across the full width of the effective flange as
shown in Figure 12. The span-to-depth deflection checks using ratio of
tension reinforcement should be based on area of concrete above
centre of tension steel.
Longitudinal shear
The shear stress in the vertical plane between the flange and web should
be assessed according to section 6.2.4 and Figure 6.7 of the Eurocode
(reproduced here as Figure 13). The change in force in the flange can
be assessed from the moment and lever arm at a particular location.
The Eurocode states that the maximum length that can be considered
for the change in force is half the distance between the maximum
moment and the point where the moment is zero. Clearly, the maximum
longitudinal force will occur where the change in moment, and
therefore force, is the greatest; for a uniformly distributed load on a
continuous beam this will be the length of beam closest to the support.
Figure 14 shows a flow chart for assessing the longitudinal shear
capacity; in many cases the transverse reinforcement in the slab will be
sufficient to resist the shear force. This check is included to ensure that
where particularly thin flanges are used there is adequate reinforcement.
The longitudinal shear capacity is based on the variable strut inclination
method, which was described in the section on vertical shear.
Rules for spacing and
quantity of reinforcement
Minimum area of longitudinal reinforcement
The minimum area of reinforcement is A
s, min
= 0.26 f
c tm
b
t
d/f
y k
but
not less than 0.0013b
t
d, where b
t
is the mean width of the tension
zone (see Table 6). For a T-beam with the flange in compression, only
the width of the web is taken into account in calculating the value of b
t
.
Maximum area of longitudinal reinforcement
The maximum area of tension or compression reinforcement, outside
lap locations should not exceed A
s, max
= 0.04 A
c
Minimum spacing of reinforcement
The minimum clear distance between bars should be the greater of:
Bar diameter
Aggregate size plus 5 mm
20 mm
4. Beams
References
1 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS EN 199211, Eurocode 2: Design of concrete structures Part 11 General rules and rules for
buildings. BSI, 2004.
2 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS 81101: The structural use of concrete Part 1, Code of practice for design and construction. BSI, 1997.
3 NARAYANAN, R S & BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Introduction to Eurocodes. The Concrete Centre, 2005.
4 BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Getting started. The Concrete Centre, 2005.
5 BRITISH STANDARDS INSTITUTION. BS EN 199212, Eurocode 2: Design of concrete structures. General rules structural fire design. BSI, 2004
6 WEBSTER, R & BROOKER, O. How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2: Deflection. The Concrete Centre, 2006.
Further guidance and advice
Guides in this series cover: Introduction to Eurocodes, Getting started, Slabs, Beams, Columns, Foundations, Flat slabs and Deflection. For free
downloads, details of other publications and more information on Eurocode 2 visit www.eurocode2.info
This guide is taken from The Concrete Centres publication, How to design concrete structures using Eurocode 2 (Ref. CCIP-006)
For information on all the new Eurocodes visit www.eurocodes.co.uk
Acknowledgements
The content of this publication was produced as part of the project Eurocode 2: transition from UK to European concrete design standards. This
project was part funded by the DTI under the Partners in Innovation scheme. The lead partner was the British Cement Association. The work was
carried out under the guidance of the Concrete Industry Eurocode 2 Group, which consists of representatives from:
Alan Baxter and Associates Arup British Cement Association British Precast Building Research Establishment Clark Smith Partnership
Concrete Innovation and Design Construct Department for Trade and Industry Office of the Deputy Prime Minister The Concrete Centre
The Concrete Society Quarry Products Association.
All advice or information from The Concrete Centre is intended for those who will evaluate the significance and limitations of its
contents and take responsibility for its use and application. No liability (including that for negligence) for any loss resulting from such
advice or information is accepted by The Concrete Centre or its subcontractors, suppliers or advisors. Readers should note that
publications from The Concrete Centre are subject to revision from time to time and they should therefore ensure that they are in
possession of the latest version. This publication has been produced following a contract placed by the Department for Trade and
Industry (DTI); the views expressed are not necessarily those of the DTI.
Ref: TCC/03/19
ISBN 1-904818-29-3
Published February 2006
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l
o
Distance between points of zero moment
l/d Span-to-depth ratio
M Design moment at the ULS
x Depth to neutral axis (d-z)/0.4
x
max
Limiting value for depth to neutral axis (d 0.4)d where d 1.0
z Lever arm
a
cc
Coefficient taking account of long term 0.85 for flexure and
effects on compressive strength and of axial loads
unfavourable effects resulting from the 1.0 for other phenomena
way load is applied (From UK National Annex)
d Ratio of the redistributed moment to the
elastic bending moment
g
m
Partial factor for material properties 1.15 for reinforcement (g
s
)
1.5 for concrete (g
c
)
r
0
Reference reinforcement ratio Rf
ck
/1000
r Required tension reinforcement at mid-span A
s
/bd
to resist the moment due to the design
loads (or at support for cantilevers)
r Required compression reinforcement at A
s2
/bd
mid-span to resist the moment due to the
design loads (or at support for cantilevers)
A
c
Cross sectional area of concrete
A
s
Area of tension steel
A
s2
Area of compression steel
A
s, prov
Area of tension steel provided
A
s, reqd
Area of tension steel required
b
eff
Effective flange width
b
t
Mean width of the tension zone
b
min
Width of beam or rib
b
w
Width of section, or width of web on flanged beams
d Effective depth
d
2
Effective depth to compression reinforcement
f
cd
Design value of concrete compressive strength a
cc
f
ck
/g
c
for f
ck
C50/60
f
ck
Characteristic cylinder strength of concrete
f
ctm
Mean value of axial tensile strength 0.30 f
ck
(2/3)
for f
ck
C50/60
(from Table 3.1, Eurocode 2)
h
f
Flange thickness
K Factor to take account of the different See table NA.4 in
structural systems UK National Annex
l
eff
Effective span of member See Section 5.3.2.2 (1)
Symbol Definition Value Symbol Definition Value
Selected symbols
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