steel beams encased in concrete
steel beams encased in concrete
(OP)
I am analyzing a structure that at first appeared to be concrete beams,girders, & columns. As we proceeded we discovered that there are steel beams encased in the concrete. The exposed steel on the bottom of the beam is 4" wide approx. 1/4" thick. The exposed steel in the girders is 4" wide, 1/4" thick and there are 2 of them 2" apart. Our end goal is to provide a load rating for the floors. We tried GPR to help determine some beam properties but was unsuccessful. The floor is 6" concrete w/ 6x6 wwf.
Anyone familiar with this floor framing system?
I have attached some pictures to better illustrate what we are looking at.
Picture 1 - Overall framing
Picture 2 - exposed steel in beam & girder
Anyone familiar with this floor framing system?
I have attached some pictures to better illustrate what we are looking at.
Picture 1 - Overall framing

Picture 2 - exposed steel in beam & girder







RE: steel beams encased in concrete
Is the steel oriented such that it's carrying tension in a mass of concrete, or is it possible that they're just concrete fireproofed steel shapes? The latter isn't that unusual in older industrial installations.
RE: steel beams encased in concrete
I briefly checked the Antiquated Structural Systems Series articles in Structure Magazine by Stuart and came up blank.
When you GPR scanned the beams, did you scan the webs faces in a horizontal direction to detect any shear reinforcement outside the structural steel section?
This from Stuart's Antiquated Structural Systems Series Dictionary: Link
RE: steel beams encased in concrete
We did scan the webs in a horizontal direction and found shear reinforcement. The shear reinforcement was also visible at some locations due to poor consolidation of the concrete around the steel.
RE: steel beams encased in concrete
At this point, I believe your best option is to email Matthew Stuart. Some time back I contacted him. Received a prompt reply. His email address is in the document that Ingenuity linked to, that email address should still be current. He probably would be interested in hearing from you on this subject.
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RE: steel beams encased in concrete
Maine Professional and Structural Engineer. www.fepc.us