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A concrete slab is a common structural element of modern buildings, consisting of a flat, horizontal surface made of cast concrete. Steel-reinforced slabs, typically between 100 and 500 mm thick, are most often used to construct floors and ceilings, while thinner mud slabs may be used for exterior paving (see below). [1] [2]
Another common type of shallow foundation is the slab-on-grade foundation where the weight of the structure is transferred to the soil through a concrete slab placed at the surface. Slab-on-grade foundations can be reinforced mat slabs, which range from 25 cm to several meters thick, depending on the size of the building, or post-tensioned ...
Waffle slab foundations adhere to International Building Code requirements. By 2008, most states put into effect the changes adopted in the 2006 IBC and, in regards to foundations, the on-grade mat foundation has become a more attractive design because, as an engineered system, it already accommodates the 2008 design recommendations, and required no major modifications to bring it into compliance.
The underside of a waffle slab, showing the grid like structure. A waffle slab or two-way joist slab is a concrete slab made of reinforced concrete with concrete ribs running in two directions on its underside. [1] The name waffle comes from the grid pattern created by the reinforcing ribs.
Slab-on-grade foundations should not be used in areas with expansive clay soil. While elevated structural slabs actually perform better on expansive clays, it is generally accepted by the engineering community that slab-on-grade foundations offer the greatest cost-to-performance ratio for tract homes.
Slabs are one of the greatest consumers of concrete in many buildings, [14] so reducing the slab mass can make a relatively large difference to the environmental impact of a building's construction. Biaxial slabs may be marginally cheaper than solid slabs, partly due to the lower mass.
Concrete can also be prestressed (reducing tensile stress) using internal steel cables (tendons), allowing for beams or slabs with a longer span than is practical with reinforced concrete alone. Inspection of existing concrete structures can be non-destructive if carried out with equipment such as a Schmidt hammer , which is sometimes used to ...
A grade beam or grade beam footing is a component of a building's foundation. It consists of a reinforced concrete beam that transmits the load from a bearing wall into spaced foundations such as pile caps or caissons. [ 1 ]