Hi,

The prestressing steel used for prestressed concrete can take the form of

1. Tendons
2. Cables
3. Wires – (Plain wire and Indented Wire)
4. Strands –(Two-wire, three-wire and seven-wire strand)
5. Bars

The types of prestressing steel are:

1. Cold Worked Prestressing steel
2. Stress-relieving prestressing steel
3. Strain tempered Prestressing steel

Read More: Specifications of Prestressing Steel in Prestressed Concrete

Difference between Reinforcing Steel and Prestressing Steel

Both R.C.C and Prestressed Concrete employs steel bars or wires in order to sustain tension. But both the types of concrete make use of different steel.

The steel used by R.C.C concrete can be:

1. Solid Bars with Ribs
2. Wires
3. Metal Mesh

The steel used in Prestressed Concrete are wires, strands, solid bars as mentioned above. Prestressed concrete uses high tensile strength steel that is manufactured by increasing the carbon content in steel compared to ordinary mild steel used in R.C.C.

In prestressed concrete, the steel used is tensioned or prestressed. This results in loss of prestress in a range of about 20%. The use of mild steel bars or HYSD bars bring a greater loss than this value. Hence, it is necessary to have high strength tensile bars for prestressed concrete.

Also Read: What is Steel Reinforcement? Types and Properties of Steel Reinforcement?

Regards