Hexagon Shaped One-Way Slab Design

[waytsh]

I have a unique situation for a suspended slab design. This will be hard to describe but I will do my best.

For the structure I am working on there is a hexagon shaped pedestal coming out of the ground nearly 8'. It is 5' wide and has a 10' cantilevered walkway around the perimeter, also in the shape of a hexagon. The slab is supported by cantilevered beams protruding from the hexagonal pedestal at all the corners and the center of the sides.

I am looking for input as to whether I should be analyzing the slab as continuous or simple span. I would think that I should be analyzing the outer portion of the slab as simple span, however, I am concerned that there is still some negative moment. I would welcome any suggestions on how to place the reinforcement at the tips of the hexagon and whether I should even be considering the inner portion of the slab as continuous as it makes the turns around the hexagon.

My intial thought is to play it conservative and size the bottom mat for simple span moments and the top mat for continuous.

Any suggestions?

 

[seattlemike]

For an easy, yet percise estimate of stresses, use SAP 2000's Finite Element modeling to capture the uneven geometries of the hexagon.

Otherwise, you could simply estimate a few "worst-case" scenarios for postive and negative moments, using continuous and simple spans asstyl've discussed.