Chapter 2

Basis of design and materials

2.1 Structural action

It is necessary to start a design by deciding on the type and layout of structure to be
used. Tentative sizes must be allocated to each structural element, so that an analysis
may be made and the sizes confirmed.
All liquid-retaining structures are required to resist horizontal forces due to the
liquid pressures. Fundamentally there are two ways in which the pressures can be
contained:
(i)
(ii)

by forces of direct tension or compression (Figure 2.1);

by flexural resistance (Figure 2.2).

Structures designed by using tensile or compressive forces are normally circular and
may be prestressed (see Chapter 4). Rectangular tanks or reservoirs rely on flexural
action using cantilever walls, propped cantilever walls or walls spanning in two directions. A structural element acting in flexure to resist liquid pressure reacts on the supporting elements and causes direct forces to occur. The simplest illustration (Figure
2.3) is a small tank. Additional reinforcement is necessary to resist such forces unless
they can be resisted by friction on the soil.

2.2 Exposure classification

Structural concrete elements are exposed to varying types of environmental conditions. The roof of a pumphouse is waterproofed with asphalt or roofing felt and, apart
from a short period during construction, is never externally exposed to wet or damp
conditions. The exposed legs of a water tower are subjected to alternate wetting and
drying from rainfall but do not have to contain liquid. The lower sections of the walls
of a reservoir are always wet (except for brief periods during maintenance), but the
upper sections may be alternately wet and dry as the water level varies. The underside
of the roof of a closed reservoir is damp from condensationbecause of the waterproofing on the external surface of the roof, the roof may remain saturated over its
complete depth. These various conditions are illustrated in Figure 2.4.
Experience has shown that, as the exposure conditions become more severe, precautions should be taken to ensure that moisture and air do not cause carbonation in the
concrete cover to the reinforcement thus removing the protection to the steel and causing corrosion, which in turn will cause the concrete surface to spall (Newman, 2003).
Adequate durability can normally be ensured by providing a dense well-compacted
concrete mix (see Section 2.5.2) with a concrete cover (cast against formwork) in the
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section

section

compression

tension

plan

plan
a)

b)

Figure 2.1 Direct forces in circular tanks. (a) Tensile forces (b) Compressive forces.

reaction from
next panel

2 way span

plan

section

elevation of one
panel

Figure 2.2 Direct forces of tension in wall panels of rectangular tanks.

friction

friction

Figure 2.3 Tension in floor of a long tank with cantilever walls.

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DESIGN OF LIQUID RETAINING CONCRETE STRUCTURES

waterproof membrane

rain

a)

b)

condensation

walls wet or dry

water level varies

walls wet

c)

Figure 2.4 Exposure to environmental conditions: (a) pumphouse roof, (b) water tower and
(c) reservoir.

Wide surface cracks

allowing moisture and
air penetration and
leakage or percolation
of liquid

Figure 2.5 Effect of cracks.

region of at least 40 mm (BS 8500-1), but it is also necessary to control cracking in

the concrete, and prevent percolation of liquid through the member (see Figure 2.5).
Previously, for design purposes, BS 8110 conveniently classified exposure in
terms of relative severity (i.e. mild, moderate, severe). However, exposure classification in Eurocode 2 is now related to the deterioration processes, i.e. carbonation,
ingress of chlorides, chemical attack from aggressive ground and freeze/thaw. Acting alongside Eurocode 2 is a more comprehensive guide, BS 8500 (Parts 1 and 2),
to assist in determining cover. For less severe exposure conditions, BS 8500 is perhaps less onerous than BS 8110. However, for more severe conditions the requirements of BS 8500 are different. This is important, as BS EN 1992-3 requires that
all liquid-retaining structures should be designed for at least severe conditions of
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exposure. Where appropriate the very severe and extreme categories should be
used. As an example, a water tower near to the sea coast and exposed to salt water
spray would be designed for very severe exposure.
As well as defining cover, durability requirements are also achieved by controlling cracking. For the serviceability limit state, the maximum (limiting) crack width
is between 0.05 mm and 0.2 mm, depending on the ratio of the hydrostatic pressure to
wall thickness. It should be noted that these limiting crack widths are actually equivalent to total crack width, i.e. in theory, early age, long term and loading (see comments
in Chapter 1). The range of crack widths provided above is provided in BS EN 1992-3.
General guidance on crack control is provided in Section 7.3 of BS EN 1992-1-1. Additional guidance is given in BS EN 1992-3 because of the nature of the structure. Early
age thermal cracking may result in through cracks, which can lead to seepage or leakage. In water-retaining structures this could be deemed a failure. BS EN 1992-3 therefore provides a Classification of Tightness, shown below in Table 2.1. This tightness
represents the degree of protection against leakage: 0 (zero) represents general provision for crack control in-line with BS EN 1992-1-1; 3 represents no leakage permitted.
Tightness class 1 is normally acceptable for water-retaining structures.
The requirement for No leakage permitted does not mean that the structure will
not crack but simply that the section is designed so that there are no through cracks.
There is no crack width recommendation of 0.1 mm for critical aesthetic appearance
in the new Eurocodes as there was in BS 8110. No rational basis for defining the aesthetic appearance of cracking exists. BS EN 1992-3 claims that for Tightness class 1
structures, limiting the crack widths to the appropriate value within the range stated
above should result in the effective sealing of the cracks within a relatively short time.
The ratios actually represent pressure gradients across the structural section. As such,
the claim that cracks of 0.2 mm will heal provided that the pressure gradient does not
exceed 5 has not changed much to the claim in BS 8007. For crack widths of less than
0.05 mm, healing will occur even when the pressure gradient is greater than 35. The fact
that these cracks do seal is not strictly only due to autogenous healing (i.e. self-healing
due to formation of hydration products) as was claimed in BS 8007, but also possibly
due to the fact that the crack becomes blocked with fine particles. As mentioned above,
sealing under hydrostatic pressure is discussed in Clause 7.3.1 of BS EN 1992-3 and for
serviceability conditions, the limit state appropriate for water retaining structures, crack
widths are limited to between 0.05 and 0.2 mm. When considering appearance and durability, further guidance with respect to crack widths and their relationship with exposure
conditions can be found in Clause 7.3.1 of BS EN 1992-1-1 and its NA (Table NA.4).
Table 2.1 Tightness classification.
Tightness class

Requirements for leakage

Some degree of leakage acceptable, or leakage of liquids irrelevant.

Leakage to be limited to a small amount. Some surface staining or damp

patches acceptable.

Leakage to be minimal. Appearance not to be impaired by staining.

No leakage permitted

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2.3 Structural layout

The layout of the proposed structure and the estimation of member sizes must precede
any detailed analysis. Structural schemes should be considered from the viewpoints
of strength, serviceability, ease of construction, and cost. These factors are to some
extent mutually contradictory, and a satisfactory scheme is a compromise, simple in
concept and detail. In liquid-retaining structures, it is particularly necessary to avoid
sudden changes in section, because they cause concentration of stress and hence
increase the possibility of cracking.
It is a good principle to carry the structural loads as directly as possible to the
foundations, using the fewest structural members. It is preferable to design cantilever
walls as tapering slabs rather than as counterfort walls with slabs and beams. The
floor of a water tower or the roof of a reservoir can be designed as a flat slab. Underground tanks and swimming-pool tanks are generally simple structures with constantthickness walls and floors.
It is essential for the designer to consider the method of construction and to specify on the drawings the position of all construction and movement joints. This is necessary as the detailed design of the structural elements will depend on the degree
of restraint offered by adjacent sections of the structure to the section being placed.
Important considerations are the provision of kickers (or short sections of upstand
concrete) against which formwork may be tightened, and the size of wall and floor
panels to be cast in one operation.

2.4 Influence of construction methods

Designers should consider the sequence of construction when arranging the layout and details of a proposed structure. At the excavation stage, and particularly on
water-logged sites, it is desirable that the soil profile to receive the foundation and
floors should be easily cut by machine. Flat surfaces and long strips are easy to form
but individual small excavations are expensive to form. The soil at foundation level
exerts a restraining force (the force develops from the restraint of early thermal contraction and shrinkage) on the structure, which tends to cause cracking (Figure 2.6). The

restraint
a)

restraint

restraint

restraint

b)

Figure 2.6 Cracking due to restraint by frictional forces at foundation level (a) Floor slab (b) Wall
(indicative only).

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frictional forces can be reduced by laying a sheet of 1 000 g polythene or other suitable
material on a 75 mm layer of blinding concrete. For the frictional forces to be reduced, it
is necessary for the blinding concrete to have a smooth and level surface finish. This can
only be achieved by a properly screeded finish, and in turn this implies the use of a grade
of concrete that can be so finished (BS 8500-1, 2006; Teychenne, 1975; Palmer, 1977).
A convenient method is to specify the same grade of concrete for the blinding layer as
is used for the structure. This enables a good finish to be obtained for the blinding layer,
and also provides an opportunity to check the strength and consistency of the concrete at
a non-critical stage of the job. It also reduces the nominal cover, cnom (BS 8500-1, 2006).
The foundations and floor slabs are constructed in sections that are of a convenient
size and volume to enable construction to be finished in the time available. Sections
terminate at a construction or movement joint (Chapter 5). The construction sequence
should be continuous as shown in Figure 2.7(a) and not as shown in Figure 2.7(b).
By adopting the first system, each section that is cast has one free end and is enabled
to shrink on cooling without end restraint (a day or two after casting), although edge
restraint will still exist (see Chapters 1 and 5). With the second method, considerable
tensions are developed between the relatively rigid adjoining slabs.
Previously, BS 8007 provided three design options for the control of thermal contraction and restrained shrinkage: continuous (full restraint), semi-continuous (partial
restraint) and total freedom of movement. On the face of it, it appears that BS EN 1992-3
does not allow semi-continuous design and therefore partial contraction joints have been
excluded. Therefore, Part 3 only offers two options: full restraint (no movement joints)
and free movement (minimum restraint). For the condition of free movement, Part 3 recommends that complete joints (free contraction joints) are spaced at the greater of 5 m
or 1.5 times the wall height. (This is similar to the maximum crack spacing of a wall,
given in BS EN 1992-1-1 Section 7, with no or less than As, min bonded reinforcement
within the tension zone, i.e. 1.3 times the height of the wall.) However, BS EN 1992-3
also states a moderate amount of reinforcement is provided sufficient to transmit any
movements to the adjacent joint. This appears contradictory. Hence continuity steel,
less than As, min is still permitted and semi-continuous joints are therefore still allowed.

restraint

cracking

restraint

a)

b)

c)

Figure 2.7 Construction sequence (a) Preferred sequence (b) Not recommended (c) Effect of
method (b) on third slab panel (cracks shown are illustrative only).

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