The course aligns with the overall objectives of the laboratory, aiming to provide students with the following knowledge and skills:
D1 - Knowledge and understanding. The course aims to provide the knowledge that allows to design reinforced concrete buildings. The tools that characterize the design of reinforced concrete structural elements are studied and analyzed. In particular, it is highlighted how the design and the verification of the sections of these elements subjected to the main stresses (axial load, bending moment, shear load, combined axial and bending action), so to make the student able to understand the peculiarities of the behavior of reinforced concrete structures. For the understanding of the topics, a guided application of the acquired theoretical tools in the design of the main structures of a reinforced-concrete building is planned.
D2 - Applying knowledge and understanding. The student will be able to independently develop the correct dimensioning of reinforced concrete constructions and to understand the peculiarities of the reinforced concrete material and the various components of the construction (beams, columns, shear walls, foundations).
D3 - Making judgments. The student will be able to choose the most suitable structural system for the construction he intends to design in order to maximize his performance.
D4 - Communication skills. The student will be able to describe in an exhaustive way the main phases of the design in the technical report of the project and will be able to illustrate with proper language the developed design work.
D5 - Learning skills. At the end of the course the student will have to be able to independently deal with insights and specialist integrations regarding the performance of reinforced concrete constructions.

The student needs to have acquired the knowledge concerning statics and the structural analysis.

The topics discussed in the course are:
• Introduction to reinforced concrete structure: conceptual approach to structural design of reinforced concrete buildings; structural schematization; simplified methods for structural analysis; introduction to the semi-probabilistic method of limit states; structural safety.
• Mechanical properties: characteristics of concrete, properties of steel reinforcement, methods of construction of reinforced concrete, experimental tests.
• Axial load: compressed elements: columns with stirrups, columns with spirals; tensed elements; construction details.
• Flexure: elastic calculation of the section and failure capacity; ultimate limit state resistance; serviceability limit states checks: stress control, deformation and cracking; construction details.
• Shear load: shear force and shear reinforcement; the Morsh truss model; resistant mechanisms in beams without shear reinforcement; design of shear reinforcement.
• Combined axial load and bending: elements loaded with small eccentricity; elements subjected to axial force and two direction bending moment; interaction diagrams M-N.
Reinforced concrete beams: design and check model for beams without/with stirrups, interaction among bending/shear/arch mechanism failures, diffusion zones, squat cantilever, Gerber saddles; punching.
• Buckling in slender columns, first and second order bending, effects on M-N diagram, solution methods for columns and whole frames.
• Structural elements for foundations: isolated footings; continuous beam foundations; grid footings; foundation slabs.

Toniolo G., Di Prisco M., “Cemento Armato – Calcolo agli stati limite”, Vol. 2a, terza edizione, Ed. Zanichelli, 2010.
Park R., Paulay T., “Reinforced Concrete Structures”, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1975.
Wight J.K., Mac Gregor J. G., “Reinforced Concrete – Mechanics and Design”, sixth ed., Pearson Education Inc., New Jersey, 2012.
Santarella L., “Prontuario del Cemento Armato”, XXXVIII edizione, Ed. Hoepli, Milano.

Extended course program and lessons calendar can be found on Moodle (http://moodle2.units.it) at the Architecture Construction Laboratory page.

The theoretical lectures of the course will be alternated with practical exercises. In the theoretical lectures, the fundamental aspects of the design of reinforced concrete structures are treated in a comprehensive manner. In the practical exercises, the analytical tools acquired in the theoretical lectures are applied in the structural design of a typical reinforced concrete construction with one-way slabs.

The student has to take two partial written examinations during the lectures, consisting of questions and exercises, to verify the acquisition of the topics treated in the theoretical lectures. To pass each partial exam (18/30), the student must correctly answer a sufficient number of questions and exercises; achieving the maximum score (30/30) requires correctly answering all proposed questions and exercises. The failed tests have to be retrieved through a written examination that will take place the day of the general Laboratory exam.
The students, within the Architectural Construction Laboratory, have to the design and verify the main structural elements that form the structure: foundations, columns, beams, floors.
The project drawings have to be quoted and must include: foundation plan and a floor plan, with clear indication of the structures, and structural details (longitudinal and transversal sections) of at least two beams, three columns and a floor. Furthermore, a report with the description of the structural choices (structural scheme) should also be produced, including the sizing and verification at both ultimate and serviceability limit states of columns, beams, floors and foundations.
During the exam, the student must undergo an oral test on the topics covered in the theoretical lessons and the project developed for the Laboratory. The score for the oral test, concerning the quality of the developed project, is given as a grade out of 30. To pass the exam (18/30), the student must demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the course topics; to achieve the highest score (30/30 with honors), the student must demonstrate excellent knowledge of all topics covered during the course.
The final grade for the course is the arithmetic average of the scores from the two written exams (or the final written exam) and the oral exam.

This course explores topics closely related to SDG of the 2030 Agenda for the Sustainable Development of United Nations, and in particular those related to the conscious and responsible consumption of resources and sustainable materials (SDG 12).