The objectives of this investigation were to study the strength and behavior of slowly (statically) loaded reinforced concrete slab-column connections and to determine the effect of rapid (dynamic) loading on the strength and behavior by comparison with the static test results. Nineteen full-scale models of a connection and adjoining slab area, consisting of a simply supported slab 84 or 94 inches square and 6-1/2 inches thick loaded concentrically on a 10- or 20-inch-square stub column at the center of the slab, were tested. The main variables were the amounts of reinforcement in the slab (p = 0.75 and 1.50 percent), the column size, and the loading speed. Eight specimens were loaded to failure statically, two were subjected to a very rapidly applied load of short duration, and nine were loaded to failure by a rapidly applied load with a rise time chosen to represent the conditions in a blast-loaded structure. The static test results are compared with 12 shear strength prediction methods. Differences between the mechanism of shear failure in slabs and beams are examined. (Author).

fib Bulletin 81 reports the latest information available to researchers and practitioners on the analysis, design and experimental evidence of punching shear of structural concrete slabs. It follows previous efforts by the International Federation for Structural Concrete (fib) and its predecessor the Euro-International Committee for Concrete (CEB), through CEB Bulletin 168, Punching Shear in Reinforced Concrete (1985) and fibBulletin 12, Punching of structural concrete slabs (2001), and an international symposium sponsored by the punching shear subcommittee of ACI Committee 445 (Shear and Torsion) and held in Kansas City, Mo., USA, in 2005. This bulletin contains 18 papers that were presented in three sessions as part of an international symposium held in Philadelphia, Pa., USA, on October 25, 2016. The symposium was co-organized by the punching shear sub-committee of ACI 445 and by fib Working Party 2.2.3 (Punching and Shear in Slabs) with the objectives of not only disseminating information on this important design subject but also promoting harmonization among the various design theories and treatment of key aspects of punching shear design. The papers are organized in the same order they were presented in the symposium. The symposium honored Professor Emeritus Neil M. Hawkins (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA), whose contributions through the years in the field of punching shear of structural concrete slabs have been paramount. The papers cover key aspects related to punching shear of structural concrete slabs under different loading conditions, the study of size effect on punching capacity of slabs, the effect of slab reinforcement ratio on the response and failure mode of slabs, without and with shear reinforcement, and its implications for the design and formulation in codes of practice, an examination of different analytical tools to predict the punching shear response of slabs, the study of the post-punching response of concrete slabs, the evaluation of design provisions in modern codes based on recent experimental evidence and new punching shear theories, and an overview of the combined efforts undertaken jointly by ACI 445 and fib WP 2.2.3 to generate test result databanks for the evaluation and calibration of punching shear design recommendations in North American and international codes of practice.

The objectives of the investigation were to design and model test a blast-resistant reinforced concrete slab system serving as the roof of a basement shelter area. The slab system was designed to offer sufficient radiation and blast protection to insure a survival probability for its occupants of 85 to 95 percent for a fa 15-psi airblast overpressure loading. Static and dynamic tests were conducted on two 1/4-scale models of a prototype shelter. The prototype shelter, as designed, has a reinforced concrete flat slab roof consisting of three 18-foot spans in each direction supported by four interior columns and by a continuous wall around the perimeter. The model included the perimeter walls and different panel configurations which would influence the load-carrying capacity of the prototype structure. The slab system was designed using the empirical method of the 1963 American Concrete Institute Code with modifications to account for the dynamic loading effects. (Author).