Prestressed concrete
High-strength tendons introduce compression in advance, reducing tensile cracking and enabling long spans.
Unlike ordinary reinforcement, prestressing compresses a member before service loads arrive so that little tensile stress remains in use.
Pretensioning casts concrete around tensioned strands in a plant. Post-tensioning tensions strands in ducts on site, and is common in bridges, parking structures, and long-span slabs.
The Kimbell’s slender vaults and many highway bridges show the method’s thin, extended sections. Tendon force, anchorage, friction, and losses govern design.
Tensioning sequence, anchorage-zone reinforcement, and grout quality determine service life. Embedded systems are difficult to replace, so initial quality is critical.
