An experimental rig to test the behaviour of reinforced concrete slabs subjected to bending and torsion

This paper describes the design, construction and operation of a large rig to apply bending and torsional moments to full-scale reinforced concrete slabs and to measure the resulting strains and deformations of the slabs. The rig can subject slabs to uniaxial or biaxial bending moments and/or torsion, using a computerbased control system operating on 37 high-quality, double-acting hydraulic jacks. The control system can conduct tests using either the magnitude of the applied loads or the magnitude of the slab deformations as the governing variable. The instrumentation carried on the rig allows the measurement of strains on the surfaces of the slabs and on the reinforcement, together with slab deformations and changes of curvature. The rig is capable of accommodating additional jacks for the application of in-plane loading.