Test of a prestressed concrete building frame

The behaviour of a multi-storey building frame under vertical loading has been simulated in a test to destruction of a full-size replica of a single storey. Reinforced concrete columns and prestressed beams were monolithically married at the joints by in situ concrete and mild steel bars and, during the test, measurements of joint moments and span de flexions were made. The frame was designed according to elastic theory and the sections were detailed in contemporary fashion as regards working stresses in the respective components, i.e. reinforced, prestressed and composite. The test confirmed that a satisfactory design with an adequate factor of safety against collapse can be made on the basis of an elastic analysis.