Comparison of Reinforced Concrete and Pre-stressed Concrete Flat Slabs in Tall Buildings

Flat slab are usually preferred floor system for tall buildings as they result in reduction in floor heights. The flat slabs without drop panel and column head are called as flat plates. The design of tall buildings is usually governed by the lateral loads imposed on the structure. The main disadvantage of flat slabs and flat plates is their lack of resistance to lateral loads, such as those due to wind forces and earthquakes. In the present study tall building with reinforced concrete flat slab floor system is compared with pre-stressed concrete flat slab floor system under lateral forces. A 30 storied tall building with a flat plate floor of size of 30m x 24m and having a panel size 6m x 6m is studied for wind forces. These slabs are design as reinforced concrete as well as pre-stressed (post tensioning) concrete flat slabs as per Indian standard codes and analysed in software SAP2000. The analysis and design results of reinforced concrete and pre-stressed concrete flat plates are compared to evaluate the performance of the tall building in resisting the lateral wind forces.