Behavior of Multiple Lap Splices in Wide Sections

Abstract

In most reinforced concrete catilever retaining walls, construction procedures require some type of splicing of the reinforcing steel. Economics often dictate the use of a lap splice. Since a retaining wall has no redundancy, understanding of splice behavior becomes critical to the design of the structure. In order to investigate the behavior of lap splices of the reinforcing steel in such a structure, twenty-five specimens were tested. The specimens were tested with the splice regions subjected to a constant moment along the length of the splice. This loading produced a stress condition as severe as that in the prototype. The main variables in the test program were the splice length and bar diameter, the ratio of the clear cover to the clear spacing of the splices, the edge splice condition, the amount of transverse reinforcement in the splice region, and the casting position. Cracking patterns, steel strain distributions, and failure modes of the specimens were studied to obtain a basic understanding of the behavior of lap splices in wide sections. /FHWA/