ABSTRACT
Composite slabs with deep trapezoidal steel decks are widely used in today’s construction industry and are a very efficient form of construction. In addition to its role as permanent formwork for the slab, the steel deck acts as the bottom, tensile reinforcement in the positive moment region of the slab. The strength of a simplysupported composite steel-concrete slab depends on the longitudinal shear capacity between the deck and the concrete slab and this controls the effectiveness of the steel deck as positive moment reinforcement (Oehlers and Bradford, 1995; Petkevicius et al. 2010; Roberts-Wollman et al, 2004). Conventional reinforcing bars or welded wire mesh may be included for the control of cracking due to restrained shrinkage or for fire-resistance purposes.
