Comparative Analysis of Circular and Rectangular Reinforced Concrete Tanks Based on Economical Design Perspective

Abstract

The need for a water tank is as old as civilization, to provide storage of water for use in many applications. Design and cost estimation of water tanks is a time consuming task, which requires a great deal of expertise. All tanks are designed as crack free structure to eliminate any leakage. This project therefore studies the efficiency of rectangular or circular tanks, 40,000 liters capacities were used in order to draw reasonable inferences on tanks shape design effectiveness, relative cost implications of tank types and structural capacities. The basic tanks construction materials include steel reinforcement, concrete and formwork obtained from the prepared structural drawings. Result of the materials take–off revealed that circular tank consumed lesser individual materials as compared to rectangular one. This will give circular shaped tanks more favored selection over the rectangular shaped tank, although some other factors must still be assessed.