subject: Concrete slab [print this page] Concrete slab Concrete slab
Thermal performance
There are two main thermal considerations. The first is the question of insulating a floor slab. In older buildings, concrete slabs cast directly on the ground can drain heat from a room. In modern construction, concrete slabs are usually cast above a layer of insulation such as expanded polystyrene, and the slab may contain underfloor heating pipes. However, there are still uses for an uninsulated slab, typically in outbuildings which are not heated or cooled to room temperature. In those cases, casting the slab directly onto a rocky substrate will maintain the slab at or near the temperature of the substrate throughout the year, and can prevent both freezing and overheating.
The second consideration is the high thermal mass, which applies to walls and floors, or wherever the concrete is used within the thermal envelope. It is a disadvantage where the rooms are heated intermittently and require a quick response, as the concrete takes time to warm up, causing a delay in warming the building. But it is an advantage in climates with large daily temperature swings, where the slab acts as a regulator, keeping the building cool by day and warm by night.
Design
For a suspended slab, there are a number of designs to improve the strength-to-weight ratio. In all cases the top surface remains flat, and the underside is modulated:
Corrugated, usually where the concrete is poured into a corrugated steel tray. This improves strength and prevents the slab bending under its own weight. The corrugations run across the short dimension, from side to side.
A ribbed slab, giving considerable extra strength on one direction.
A waffle slab, giving added strength in both directions.
Reinforcement design
A one way slab has structural strength in shortest direction.
A two way slab has structural strength in two directions.
Construction
A concrete slab may be prefabricated or in situ. Prefabricated concrete slabs are built in a factory and transported to the site, ready to be lowered into place between steel or concrete beams. They may be pre-stressed (in the factory), post-stressed (on site), or unstressed. It is vital that the supporting structure is built to the correct dimensions, or the slabs may not fit.
In situ concrete slabs are built on the building site using formwork - a type of boxing into which the wet concrete is poured. If the slab is to be reinforced, the rebars are positionined within the formwork before the concrete is poured in. Plastic tipped metal, or plastic bar chairs are used to hold the rebar away from the bottom and sides of the form-work, so that when the concrete sets it completely envelops the reinforcement. For a ground slab, the form-work may consist only of sidewalls pushed into the ground. For a suspended slab, the form-work is shaped like a tray, often supported by a temporary scaffold until the concrete sets.
The formwork is commonly built from wooden planks and boards, plastic, or steel. On commercial building sites today, plastic and steel are more common as they save labour. On low-budget sites, for instance when laying a concrete garden path, wooden planks are very common. After the concrete has set the wood may be removed, or left there permanently.
In some cases formwork is not necessary - for instance, a ground slab surrounded by brick or block foundation walls, where the walls act as the sides of the tray and hardcore acts as the base.
