Technical Webinar: Nonlinear Finite Element Analysis of Full-Scale Precast Prestressed Hollow Core Floors

Prestressed precast hollow-core slabs are among the most widely used flooring systems in Europe, representing nearly 50% of the precast floor market. A hollow-core floor consists of multiple slabs interconnected by cast-on-site joints, enabling transverse load distribution between adjacent units and allowing more resource-efficient structural design. However, concentrated loading induces a complex three-dimensional stress state in the thin-walled concrete cross-section, which lacks transverse and vertical reinforcement, making the structural response highly dependent on the tensile capacity of concrete. To investigate these mechanisms, a comprehensive full-scale experimental campaign was conducted on full-scale hollow core floor assemblies. Based on the experimental results, advanced nonlinear finite element models were developed in DIANA to capture the interaction between adjacent units, load redistribution, cracking, and failure behavior. This webinar presents the development, calibration, and validation of the numerical models and demonstrates their application for studying the structural behavior of interconnected hollow-core floor systems subjected to concentrated loads.