What is Flat Slab?

a reinforced concrete slab supported directly by concrete columns without the use of
beams and girders

Common practice of design and construction is to support the slabs by beams and support the
beams by columns. This may be called as beam-slab construction. The beams reduce the
available net clear ceiling height. Hence in warehouses, offices and public halls some times
beams are avoided and slabs are directly supported by columns. This types of construction is
aesthetically appealing also. These slabs which are directly supported by columns are called
Flat Slabs
A flat slab is a two-way reinforced concrete slab that usually does not have beams and girders,
and the loads are transferred directly to the supporting concrete columns.
A flat slab is a flat section of concrete. These slabs are classically used in foundations, although they
can also be used in the construction of roadways, paths, and other structures. Depending on the
size and complexity of a flat slab, it may need to be designed by an engineer who is familiar with the
limitations and needs of slabs, or it may be possible for a handy do it yourselfer to make one in an
afternoon for a simple project.
Typically, a flat slab is made with reinforced concrete, in which rebar is criss-crossed in the forms to
provide support and reinforcement once the concrete is poured and hardened. The slab design is
designed to be reinforced in several directions so that it can withstand stresses such as shifting
ground, earthquakes, frost, and so forth. Failure to fully reinforce a flat slab can cause it to crack or
give along weak lines in the concrete, which will in turn cause instability.
For some sites, a flat slab is poured in situ. In this case, the site is prepared, forms for the concrete
are set up, and the reinforcing rebar or other materials are laid down. Then, the concrete is mixed,
poured, and allowed to cure before moving on to the next stage of construction. The time required
can vary considerably, with size being a major factor; the bigger the slab, the more complex
reinforcement needs can get, which in turn adds to the amount of time required for set up. Once
poured, the slab also has to be examined and tested to confirm that the pour was good, without air
pockets or other problems which could contribute to a decline in quality.

In other cases, a flat slab may be prefabricated off site and transported to a site when it is needed.
This may be done when conditions at the site do not facilitate an easy pour, or when the conditions
for the slab's construction need to be carefully controlled. Transportation of the slab can be a
challenge if it is especially large. Barges, cranes, and flatbed trucks may be required to successfully
move it from the fabrication site to the site of the installation.
The flat slab foundation is not without problems. It can settle on uneven ground, allowing the
structure to settle as well, for example, and during seismic activity, a slab foundation cannot hold up
if the soils are subject to liquefaction. A flat slab can also become a major source of energy
inefficiency, as structures tend to lose heat through the concrete.

The FLAT slab system of construction is one in

which the beam is used in the conventional
methods of construction done away with the
directly rests on column and the load from the
slabs is directly transferred to the columns and
then to the foundation. Drops or columns are
generally provided with column heads or
capitals. Grid floor systems consisting of beams
spaced at regular intervals in perpendicular
directions, monolithic with slab. They are
generally employed for architectural reasons for
large rooms such as auditoriums, vestibules,
theatre halls, show rooms of shops where
column free space is often the main
requirement.

Uses of column heads :

increase shear strength of slab
reduce the moment in the slab by
reducing the clear or effective span
Uses of drop panels :
increase shear strength of slab
increase negative moment capacity
of slab
stiffen the slab and hence reduce
deflection

The column head is some times

widened so as to reduce the
punching shear in the slab. The
widened portions are called
column heads. The column heads
may be provided with any angle
from
the
consideration
of
architecture but for the design,
concrete in the portion at 45 on
either side of vertical only is
considered as effective for the
design [Ref. Fig. 1.2]

Moments in the slabs are more near the column. Hence the slab is thickened near the columns by
providing the drops as shown in Fig. 1.3. Sometimes the drops are called as capital of the column. Thus
we have the following types of flat slabs:

(i)
(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

Slabs without drop and

column head (Fig. 1.1)
Slabs without drop and
column with column head
(Fig. 1.2).
Slabs with drop and
column without column
head (Fig. 1.3).
Slabs with drop and
column head as shown in
Fig. 1.4.
The portion of flat slab that is bound on each of
its four sides by centre lines of adjacent columns
is called a panel. The panel shown in Fig. 1.5 has
size L1 L2. A panel may be divided into column
strips and middle strips. Column Strip means a
design strip having a width of 0.25L1 or 0.25L2,
whichever is less. The remaining middle portion
which is bound by the column strips is called
middle strip. Fig. 1.5 shows the division of flat slab
panel into column and middle strips in the
direction y.
PROPORTIONING OF SLABS
DROPS

The drops when provided shall be

rectangular in plan, and have a length in each
direction not less than one third of the panel in
that direction. For exterior panels, the width of
drops at right angles to the non continuous
edge and measured from the centre-line of the
columns shall be equal to one half of the width
of drop for interior panels.
COLUMN HEADS

Where column heads are provided, that portion of the column head which lies within the
largest right circular cone or pyramid entirely within the outlines of the column and the
column head, shall be considered for design purpose as shown in Figs. 1.2 and 1.4.

Advantages of Flat Slab

Flat Slabs are used by engineers in many building due to its advantages over
other reinforced concrete floor system in different cases. The most important advantages of
flat slabs are given below:
Flexibility in room layout.

Partition walls can be placed anywhere.

Offers a variety of room layout to the owner.
False ceiling can be omitted.

SAVING
HEIGHT

IN

BUILDING

Lower storey height will

reduce building weight
due to lower partitions
and cladding to faade
approx. saves 10% in
vertical members
reduce foundation load

SHORTER CONSTRUCTION TIME

Big table framework can be used in flat slab

Simplified the table formwork needed

Reinforcement placement is easier.

As reinforcement detailing of flat slab is simple, it is easier to
place

Prefabricated welded mesh.

Prefabricated in standard sizes

Minimised installation time
Better quality control

Buildable score

allows standardized structural members and prefabricated sections to be integrated

into the design for ease of construction
this process will make the structure more buildable, reduce the number of site workers
and increase the productivity at site
more tendency to achieve a higher Buildable score

EASE OF INSTALLATION OF M&E SERVICES

all M & E services can be mounted directly on the underside of the slab instead of
bending them to avoid the beams
avoids hacking through beams
Auto sprinkler is easier.

Disadvantages
Span length is medium.
Not suitable for supporting brittle (masonry) partitions
Use of drop panels may interfere with larger mechanical ducting
Critical middle strip deflection
Vertical penetrations need to avoid area around columns

Design Considerations
WALL AND COLUMN POSITION
Locate position of wall to maximise the structural stiffness for lateral loads
Facilitates the rigidity to be located to the centre of building
OPTIMISATION OF STRUCTURAL LAYOUT PLAN
the sizes of vertical and structural structural members can be optimised to keep the volume of
concrete for the entire superstructure inclusive of walls and lift cores to be in the region of 0.4 to 0.5 m3
per square metre
this figure is considered to be economical and comparable to an optimum design in conventional of
beam and slab systems
DEFLECTION CHECK
necessary to include checking of the slab deflection for all load cases both for short and long term
basis
In general, under full service load, < L/250 or 40 mm whichever is smaller
Limit set to prevent unsightly occurrence of cracks on non-structural walls and floor finishes
CRACK CONTROL

 advisable to perform crack width calculations based on spacing of reinforcement as detailed and the
moment envelope obtained from structural analysis
good detailing of reinforcement will restrict the crack width to within acceptable tolerances as
specified in the codes and reduce future maintenance cost of the building
FLOOR OPENINGS
No opening should encroach upon a column head or drop
Sufficient reinforcement must be provided to take care of stress concentration

PUNCHING SHEAR
always a critical consideration in flat plate design around the
columns
instead of using thicker section, shear reinforcement in the
form of shear heads, shear studs or stirrup cages may be
embedded in the slab to enhance shear capacity at the edges of
walls and columns
CONSTRUCTION LOADS
critical for fast track project where removal of forms at early strength is required
possible to achieve 70% of specified concrete cube strength within a day or two by using high strength
concrete
alternatively use 2 sets of forms
LATERAL STABILITY
buildings with flat plate design is generally less rigid
lateral stiffness depends largely on the configuration of lift core position, layout of walls and columns
frame action is normally insufficient to resist lateral loads in high rise buildings, it needs to act in
tandem with walls and lift cores to achieve the required stiffness
MULTIPLE FUNCTION PERIMETER BEAMS
adds lateral rigidity
reduce slab deflection

DESIGN METHODOLOGY
the simplified method
the equivalent frame method
direct design method
SIMPLIFIED METHOD

Table 3.19 may be used provided

Live load > 1.25 Dead load
Live load (excluding partitions) > 5KN/m2
there are at least 3 rows of panels of approximately equal span in direction considered
lateral stability is independent of slab column connections

* the design moments in the edge panel may

have to be adjusted according to 3.7.4.3 F is
the total design ultimate load on the strip of
slab between adjacent columns considered
(1.4gk + 1.6 qk) l is the effective span

EQUIVALENT FRAME METHOD

most commonly used method

use elastic frame analysis to compute positive and negative moments
the flat slab structure is divided longitudinally and transversely into frames consisting of
columns and strips of slabs with :
o stiffness of members based on concrete alone
o for vertical loading, full width of the slab is used to evaluate stiffness
o effect of drop panel may be neglected if dimension < lx/3

Plan of floor slab

Step 1 : define line of support in

X & Y directions

Step 2 : define design

strips in X & Y directions

DIRECT DESIGN METHOD

Use coefficients to compute positive and negative moments
Direct Design Method (DDM) For slab systems with or
without beams loaded only by gravity loads and having a fairly
regular layout meeting the following conditions:
o There shall be minimum of three continuous spans in
each directions.
o The panels shall be rectangular and the ratio of the
longer span to the shorter span within a panel shall not be greater
than 2.
o The successive span length in each direction shall not
differ by more than one-third of longer span.
o The end span must be shorter but not greater than
the interior span.

o
o

Columns must be near the corners of each panel with an offset from the general column
line of no more 10% of the span in each direction.
The live load should not exceed 3 times the dead load in each direction. All loads shall
be due gravity only and uniformly distributed over an entire panel.

ANALYSIS OF FLAT SLAB

COLUMN HEAD

DIVISION OF PANELS
The panels are divided into column strips and middle strips in both direction.
(a) Slab Without Drops
(b) Slab With Drops

MOMENT DIVISION
Note : For slab with drops where the
width of the middle strip exceeds L/2,
the distribution of moment in the
middle strip should be increased in
proportion to its increased width and
the moment resisted by the column
strip should be adjusted accordingly.

 DESIGN FOR BENDING

INTERNAL PANELS
columns and middle strips should be designed to withstand design moments from
analysis
EDGE PANELS
apportionment of moment exactly the same as internal columns

Otherwise structural arrangements shall be changed.

PUNCHING SHEAR

DEFLECTION
(i) use normal span/effective depth ratio if drop width >1/3 span each way; otherwise
(ii) to apply 0.9 modification factor for flat slab, or where drop panel width < L/3
1.0 otherwise

 OPENINGS
o Holes in areas bounded by
the column strips may be
formed providing :
greatest dimension < 0.4
span length and
total positive and negative
moments are redistributed
between
the
remaining
structure to meet the
changed conditions

o Holes in areas common to

two column strips may be
formed providing :
that their aggregate their
length or width does not
exceed one-tenth of the
width of the column strip;
that the reduced sections
are capable of resisting with
the moments; and
that the perimeter for
calculating the design shear
stress
is
reduced
if
appropriate

o Holes in areas common to the

column strip and the middle strip
may be formed providing :
that in aggregate their length
or width does not exceed onequarter of the width of the
column strip and
that the reduced sections are
capable of resisting the design
moments
o For all other cases of openings, it should be framed on all sides with beams to carry the
loads to the columns.