Ductility Design of High-Strength Concrete Beams and Columns

High-strength concrete (HSC) is increasingly used for the construction of tall buildings and long span bridges. However, most engineers just focus on how to better utilize the strength potential of HSC and little attention is paid to ensure that the HSC structures would have sufficient ductility. In this regard, it should be noted that the current design codes, which do not provide any guidelines for ductility design, are not applicable to HSC structures. In recent years, the authors have been conducting research on how the use of HSC would affect the flexural ductility of concrete members. Herein, an overall summary of their research is presented. It will be shown that depending on the reinforcement detailing and loading conditions, the ductility of HSC structures is not necessarily lower than that of normal concrete structures. Finally, guidelines for the ductility design of HSC beams and columns, augmented with design formulas and charts, are given.