Walls, foundations, splices and serviceabilityQuiz

A “floating” mat foundation minimizes settlement by:

• Balancing soil pressure with building weight

• Using deeper piles

• Reducing foundation thickness

• Increasing concrete strength

The purpose of stirrups in reinforced concrete beams is to resist:

• Bending moment

• Shear forces

• Torsion

• Deflection

The most common cause of water pressure behind a retaining wall is:

• Lack of drainage

• Soil compaction

• Wall height

• Concrete quality

The primary function of a pile cap is to:

• Prevent soil erosion

• Support horizontal loads

• Distribute column loads to piles

• Reduce deflection

In a reinforced concrete beam, the earliest type of cracking due to increasing load is:

• Diagonal tension cracking

• Flexural cracking

• Web-shear cracking

• Horizontal shear cracking

Which foundation type is best for weak soil conditions?

• Spread footing

• Mat foundation

• Strap footing

• Isolated footing

Steel reinforcing is added when the shear strength of the concrete alone is insufficient.

• True

• False

Serviceability in concrete design relates only to the ultimate strength of the structure.

• True

• False

Deflection limits are set to maintain structural integrity and appearance.

• True

• False

Bond stress transfers tension from concrete to steel reinforcement.

• True

• False