University of Texas at Arlington

Department of Civil Engineering

CE 4347: Reinforced Concrete Design
Spring, 2012

Catalog Data CE 4347: Reinforced Concrete Design

Credits 3
Catalog An analysis, design-synthesis course for concrete structures, emphasizing elastic
Description analysis and ultimate strength design. Topics include strength and serviceability
(2008-2009) requirements, design of slabs, beams, columns and foundations for strength for flexure,
shear, and bearing.

Prerequisites Passing grades in CE 3341 Structural Analysis.

Admission to CE Professional Program.
The prerequisites will not be waived.

Class Schedule Lecture: T Th: 2:00 PM – 3:20 PM, Room 108 NH

Tutorial: M: 1:00 – 2: 30 PM; W: 1:00 – 3:00 PM (Room B25 NH)

Instructor Nur Yazdani, Ph.D., P.E., CE Professor and Chairman.

Office: 425 NH
Office hours: M W: 1 PM – 3 PM
I am also usually available in my office at other times, except before
Class periods. Alternately, you may schedule an appointment by phone
or e-mail with Sara Ridenour, my secretary.

Phone: (817) 272-5055 (Office)

FAX: (817) 272-0661
E-mail: [email protected]

Teaching Md. Istiaque Hasan, Graduate Assistant

Assistant Office: Room B25 NH
Office hours: M: 2:00 – 3: 30 PM; W: 3:30 – 5:00 PM
Phone: 817-272-5646
E-mail:[email protected]
Course Material Required Material:
 Design of Concrete Structures, 14th Edition, by Nilson, Darwin and Dolan,
McGraw Hill.
 Building Code Requirements for Reinforced Concrete, ACI 318-08, American
Concrete Institute, Farmington Hills, MI, 2011.
 Lecture notes: available on Blackboard (http://www.uta.edu/blackboard/)

Optional Reference Material:

 Theory and Problems of Reinforced Concrete Design, by N. J. Everard,
Schaum’s Outline Series, McGraw-Hill Book Company.
This is a classic problem solving reference with numerous detailed worked out
examples.
 Notes on ACI 318-11 Code for Concrete Design, by the Portland Cement
Association (PCA), Chicago, IL.
This fine reference demonstrates many of the latest ACI 318 Code specification
applications through explanations and examples. It contains many user-friendly
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 design aids. A copy will be held as a reference in the Engineering Library.

Online Resources: A variety of on-line resources are available for the enhancement of
your concrete design learning experience. There are many others. Please feel free to
explore.
www.cement.org
www.pci.org
www.concrete.org.uk
www.concrete.org
www.crsi.org

Computer  Class e-mail will be sent to your UT Arlington account through the Blackboard
Accounts course web site and also your MyMav account. If you use another primary
e-mail account, you need to regularly check your UT Arlington e-mail for
important information.
 Lecture notes, this syllabus, assignments, assignment solutions, term project
details, grades, etc. will be available on Blackboard
(http://www.uta.edu/blackboard/)
Course Rationale In your previous courses, you have acquired knowledge in various areas such as
mechanics (finding reactions, centroids and moments of inertias), strength of materials
(finding stresses and strains in structures), and structural analysis (finding reactions,
moments, shears and deflections). The previous courses laid the groundwork for your
transformation into a structural/concrete designer. This course will build upon your
knowledge from the previous courses, and will provide you with the skills needed to
analyze and design real life basic concrete structural elements such as slabs, beams,
columns, etc. Reinforced Concrete is one of the most widely used materials in modern
buildings, bridges, highways, tanks, walls, dams, etc. Concrete is the most consumed
material in the modern society, besides water. The strength, versatility, adaptability,
durability, appearance and cost of modern concrete are unparalleled. This course will
enable you to become familiar with the latest specifications, methods and software for
concrete design. The course instruction will be heavily practice and technology
oriented, with broad emphasis on practical applications and methodology. Material you
learn in this course is critical to your becoming a successful and valued concrete
engineer in today’s highly competitive marketplace.
Student At the end of this course, you should be able to accomplish the student outcomes shown
Outcomes in the following. The goal of the course is to provide graduating seniors with a thorough
background in the theory and practice of basic reinforced concrete design. Towards this
end, the following student outcomes will be achieved:

Student  Outcomes                                                                                                                Extent of Coverage* 

(a) An ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science, and engineering CI

(c) An ability to design a system, component, or process to meet desired needs TE

within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social,
political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability

(e) An ability to identify, formulate and solve engineering problems TI

(f) An understanding of professional and ethical responsibility CI

(g) An ability to communicate effectively TI

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 (h) The broad education necessary to understand the impact of engineering CI
solutions in a global, economic, environmental and societal context

(i) A recognition of the need for, and an ability to engage in life-long learning CI

(j) A knowledge of contemporary issues CI

(k) An ability to use the techniques, skills and modern engineering tools necessary TI
for engineering practice
 
*Notes
 
Covered Implicitly (CI): The outcome is implicitly covered
Covered Explicitly (CE): The outcome is explicitly covered
Tested Implicitly (TI): The outcome is covered and implicitly assessed for by one or more means
(assignments, test questions, essay questions, presentation evaluations, lab
reports, etc.)
Tested Explicitly (TE): The outcome is explicitly assessed for by one or more means

CE 4347, a The Civil Engineering Department ABET procedure includes assessing the achievement
“Design” Course of various departmental student learning outcomes (www.uta.edu/ce/ugoutcomes.php).
CE 4347 is designated as a “Design” course for the CE Department, through which the
following outcomes will be assessed:

CE Department Outcome “c”: An ability to design a system, component, or process to

meet desired needs within realistic constraints such as economic, environmental, social,
political, ethical, health and safety, manufacturability, and sustainability.

ABET CE Program Outcome: An ability to design a system, component or process in

more than one civil engineering context.

The following process will be followed in this course towards assessing the outcomes:

1. There will be a design term project, including both analysis and synthesis
requiring at least three weeks of effort.
2. The project must have some iterative components. Students will be encouraged
to define the design problem, including scope and design objectives.
3. The course project will be open-ended, with at least a few alternate solutions.
4. The course project or assignment should include any applicable codes and
regulations, and also a minimum of two realistic design constraints from the
following list: economic, environmental, social, political, ethical, health and
safety, constructability, and sustainability.
5. A design summary report must be completed by students at the semester end; it
should include a documented analysis of alternatives and consideration of
constraints.
6. The minimum passing grade in the project is 70.
7. The project grade will also count towards your overall course grade, as discussed
later.

Student Deadlines and Instructions

Responsibility Following professional conduct that you will encounter in practice, the course contains
strict deadlines, instructions and professionalism. Please read instructions carefully and
schedule your activities accordingly to meet schedules. You should check your e-mail
and the Blackboard course web page regularly, and note other announcements, on-line
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and in class.

Class Participation
Class participation can be achieved in two ways. I shall ask your group and you
questions in class on the previous lectures, and on the material currently being
discussed. You should be prepared to answer these questions, and should also
participate by asking questions, suggesting ideas, and performing in-class group
activities that I assign. I prefer an interactive class-room where the instructor and the
students freely participate in active learning. Of course, you cannot participate in class
unless you attend it!

Group Work
You must work in groups of 3 for the following activities: homework, class quizzes and
term project. The groups should represent diversity in terms of student background and
academic performance. You should participate in all group activities and make a fair
contribution to the group effort.

Homework
Required homework will be due at the beginning of the period on the due date - one
solution set per group. Use engineering paper, one side of each paper, and box the
solution. On the inside, put the name of the group leader, all other participating group
members, the date, and the assignment number. If a student's name appears on a
solution set, it certifies that he/she has participated in solving some of the problems and
understands all the solutions. If this turns out not to be the case, both the student in
question and the group leader will be considered to have cheated and will be dealt with
accordingly. Please keep a copy of your homework before it is submitted in case the
homework is lost or misplaced. Late homework will be accepted for up to two weeks
after the due date. A penalty of 20% for each 24 hours will be assessed on late
homework. However, if a group abuses this privilege on a regular basis, it will be
withdrawn. One group member should be designated the leader for each homework. The
leader will be responsible for coordinating the work and making sure everyone in the
group understands all the problem solutions before they are handed in (Hint: Try to set
up each problem individually, then get together to work out the details). After being a
group leader, an individual may not be leader again until everyone else in the group has
held the position.

Tutorial Class Attendance

Two tutorial sessions per week will be arranged outside the regularly scheduled class
period. Although the tutorial class attendance is not required, it is highly recommended.
The tutor will provide you with helpful hints on homework, solve additional problems,
and help you with your term project and software usage.

Term Project
A group term project is required as a part of this class. The topic will be practice
oriented, will require design code usage, latest design software and drafting
applications. The instructor will supply the class with the project concept during the
second week of classes. A written proposal, interim progress report, oral final
presentation and written final report are required. The project grade will be based on the
following:

Proposal: 28%
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 Progress report: 16%
Oral presentation: 28%
Final report: 28%

You must be able to understand, explain and execute your group project work. About
half of the group project grade will be based on group activities, and the other half based
on your individual contribution. Therefore, when asked, you should be able to explain
and clearly identify your own contribution.

Professional The course will teach senior level civil engineering students how to efficiently analyze
Component of the and design real life buildings and bridges made of reinforced concrete, using the latest
Course available professional codes, methods and tools. Professional level group term project
is also involved.

Topics/ Course Topics Dates (2012) Sessions

Tentative Time
Schedule/ Introduction: Reinforced concrete (RC), building
No. of Sessions and design codes, service and ultimate loads, the 01/17 – 01/19 2
ACI analysis and design process, structural safety,
types of RC structures, loads.

Materials: Mechanical properties of concrete and

reinforcing steel, compression/tension/stress-strain, 01/24 – 01/26 2
types of reinforcing steel.

Beam Design for Flexure: Service conditions,

Whitney stress block, flexural strength, load and
capacity factors, strength design and analysis, 01/31– 02/16 6
reinforcement limits, steel choice and placement,
open ended design.

Project proposals due 02/23 ---

Flanged beams: Effective flange width, steel limits, 02/21 – 02/28 3

effect of moment reversal, continuous spans.

03/01 1
One-way slabs: two-way vs. one-way construction,
moment coefficients, steel limits and placement, 03/01 – 03/06 2
temperature and shrinkage steel.

TEST 1 03/08 1

Spring Break (classes in Cancun!) 03/13 – 03/15 2

Serviceability: deflections, short and long term 03/20 – 03/22 2

effects, equivalent Moment of Inertia, deflection
limits, crack control.

Project Interim Report due 03/27 ---

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 Shear Design: shear failure in reinforced concrete 03/27 – 03/29 2
beams, shear steel and limits, shear strength of
concrete, stirrup placement.

Guest Lecture 04/03 1

Bond and Anchorage: Bond stress, development 04/05 – 04/10 2

length of steel, cutoff points and anchorage.

Field Trip 04/12 1

Columns: Fundamentals of column behavior, beam- 04/17 – 04/24 3

columns, short column strength, interaction
diagrams.

Test 2 04/26 1

Term Project presentations 05/01 1

Optional Final Test (comprehensive) TBD ---

Grading Criteria The overall course grade will be based on the performance of each student in the
following categories: homework, tests, term project, and class participation.

The following is the published grade percentage distributions:

Homework: 19%
Two tests: 27% each
Term project: 20%
Class participation: 7%

A weighted grade of 90 or above overall is guaranteed an A, 80 or above at least a B, 70

or above at least a C, and 60 or above at least a D. Exceptions from the published grade
scales may be made based on the overall course grade statistics, and the following
factors: (a) your participation in class, (b) your interaction with the instructor, tutor and
other students in the class, (c) your leadership demonstration.

Prepared By Nur Yazdani, Ph.D., P.E.

COURSE POLICIES

Examinations: There will be two regular tests during the semester and one optional final
examination. The instructor understands that students may have a down day once in a while,
which may affect their test grades. As a compensation for extenuating circumstances affecting
your test grades, you may take the optional comprehensive final examination, which will be
scheduled during the final examination week. If you take this optional test, the grade from this
test will substitute the grade from one of the regularly scheduled tests. If you miss any test for
emergency reasons, a cumulative make-up test will be scheduled during the last week of classes.
All students missing any test will be given the opportunity to take this make-up test. The student

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must submit admissible evidence of emergencies that prevented them from taking the regularly
scheduled examination.

Attendance: The universities require attendance in all classes, and it is very important to your
learning. It is important that you make every effort to attend all lectures, if possible. The
instructor may cover material from outside the text-book which will be useful supplementary
material. The instructor will also use visual aids, practical cases, class interaction and thoroughly
worked out example problems to enhance classroom learning. In the instructor’s opinion,
keeping attendance record is a poor and inefficient practice. However, students attending lectures
will be indirectly credited through group activities (see grading policy and group activities). In
emergency situations, absence may be excused with appropriate documentation. You should let
me know in advance, when possible, and submit the documentation. You should make up any
materials missed due to absence.

Drop Policy: Please see university drop policy and deadlines.

Americans With Disabilities Act: The University of Texas at Arlington is on record as being
committed to both the spirit and letter of federal equal opportunity legislation; reference Public
Law 92-112 – The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. With the passage of federal
legislation entitled Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), pursuant to section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act, there is renewed focus on providing this population with the same
opportunities enjoyed by all citizens.

As a faculty member, I am required by law to provide “reasonable accommodations” to students

with disabilities, so as not to discriminate on the basis of that disability. Student responsibility
primarily rests with informing faculty of their need for accommodation and in providing
authorized documentation through designated administrative channels. Information regarding
specific diagnostic criteria and policies for obtaining academic accommodations can be found at
www.uta.edu/disability/. Also, you may visit the Office for Students with Disabilities in room
102 of University Hall or call them at (817) 272-3364.

Academic Integrity: It is the philosophy of The University of Texas at Arlington that academic
dishonesty is a completely unacceptable mode of conduct and will not be tolerated in any form.
All persons involved in academic dishonesty will be disciplined in accordance with University
regulations and procedures. Discipline may include suspension or expulsion from the University.
“Scholastic dishonesty includes but is not limited to cheating, plagiarism, collusion, the
submission for credit of any work or materials that are attributable in whole or in part to another
person, taking an examination for another person, any act designed to give unfair advantage to a
student or the attempt to commit such acts.” (Regents’ Rules and Regulations, Series 50101,
Section 2.2)

Student Support Services Available: The University of Texas at Arlington supports a variety of
student success programs to help you connect with the University and achieve academic success.
These programs include learning assistance, developmental education, advising and mentoring,
admission and transition, and federally funded programs. Students requiring assistance
academically, personally, or socially should contact the Office of Student Success Programs at

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817-272-6107 for more information and appropriate referrals.

Final Review Week: A period of five class days prior to the first day of final examinations is
designated as Final Review Week. During this week, no new assignments will be given;
however, previously assigned work may have a completion date during this week. In addition,
no portion of the final examination shall be administered during the Final Review Week. Classes
are held as scheduled during this week and materials covered in lectures during this week may be
included in the final examination.

Librarian to Contact: Barbara Howser, Science and Technology Library.

E-Culture Policy: The University of Texas at Arlington has adopted the University email
address as an official means of communication with students. Through the use of email, UT-
Arlington is able to provide students with relevant and timely information, designed to facilitate
student success. In particular, important information concerning registration, financial aid,
payment of bills, and graduation may be sent to students through email. All students are assigned
an email account and information about activating and using it is available at
http://www.uta.edu/oit/eos/email/faq.php. There is no additional charge to students for using this
account, and it remains active as long as a student is enrolled at UT-Arlington. Students are
responsible for checking their email regularly.

Grade Grievance Policy: Grade grievances will be handled according to the policy described in
the College of Engineering portion of the Catalog.

“X” Grade: Excerpts from UT Arlington Undergraduate Catalog: " A grade of X (incomplete)
may be assigned for a course if, in the opinion of the instructor, there are extenuating
circumstances which prevent the student from completing the required work within the semester
of enrollment for the course. The incomplete must be removed by the end of the final
examination period of the following semester, excluding the summer session, for the student to
receive credit for the course. If the incomplete is not removed during the allotted time period, it
will revert automatically to an F. As long as the grade is carried as an X, it will not be used in the
calculation of the student’s grade point average. Consistent with these policies, an incomplete
grade will only be assigned at the instructor's discretion only under the following circumstances:
 The optional final test is missed with an accepted excuse. In this case, you must
make up the final test during the first two weeks of the following semester.
 Due to an extended illness or other extraordinary circumstances, with accepted
documentation, the student is unable to participate in class for an extended time.
In this case, arrangements must be made to make up the missed work prior to the
end of the following semester.

An 'X' grade will not be given as a remedy for poor work.

Professional Ethics: You will gain confidence in your ability to design and analyze reinforced
concrete structures only when you do the work yourself. However, you will also learn a lot
through discussions with your peers. In order to balance the two goals, the following guideline is
provided:

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  Things you may not do: You should not copy work from others. This includes
directly copying homework, tests, project materials, etc, and submitting it as your
own work. Furthermore, you should assure that others cannot copy your work.
Allowing copying of your material will only hinder the learning of the parties
involved.
 Things you may do: You may discuss specific problems related to analysis/design
steps, Code usage, efficient design, and project issues with others.

Plagiarism: Plagiarism is representing another’s work or any part thereof, be it published or

unpublished, as ones own. For example, plagiarism includes failure to use quotation marks or
other conventional markings around material quoted from any source. Failure to document
properly is also considered plagiarism. Copying someone else’s work and turning it in as if it
was your own work, is also considered plagiarism.

Technology and Practice: The course work will be heavily geared towards technology and
practice. Students will be asked to contact outside sources such as design/construction industry
and concrete vendors in order to obtain information. Problems in the class and homework will be
designed to utilize this information. Commercial concrete design software similar to the ones
used by industry design offices will be demonstrated in the classroom. Students will be able to
use the software from the department and/or the college computer labs. In addition, students will
be supplied with spreadsheet programs, and will be asked to write their own. It is expected that at
least one field trip to concrete construction sites will be arranged during the semester, where you
can obtain valuable practice oriented knowledge as complementary to the classroom knowledge.
Guest speakers from the industry will be invited to speak to the students.

Syllabus Change Policy: This syllabus is a guide for the course and is subject to change with
advance notice.