Flexural ductility and deformability of concrete beams incorporating high‐performance materials

High‐performance materials, such as high‐strength concrete (HSC) and high‐strength steel (HSS), are often adopted in tall buildings to reduce member size and save space. The use of HSC and/or HSS can significantly increase the flexural strength of concrete members but may also adversely affect the flexural ductility and deformability. Herein, the pros and cons of using HSC and HSS in concrete beams are investigated in terms of the limits of flexural strength, ductility and deformability that can be simultaneously achieved using nonlinear moment‐curvature analysis with stress‐path dependence of the reinforcement taken into account. The results reveal that the use of HSC or both HSC and HSS in concrete beams can at the same strength increase the ductility and deformability, or increase the strength without depleting the ductility and deformability. However, the use of HSS has no such benefit, albeit it can reduce the steel area required. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.