Review of American RHS Web Crippling Provisions

Further web crippling tests on rectangular hollow section members have been recently undertaken, with compressive loads transverse to the chord axis applied by full-width, welded branch members. These test data have covered extreme parametric ranges for rectangular hollow section bearing conditions, and supplements the existing limited experimental data. Using all test evidence now available, an assessment is made of the current American Welding Society design provisions for matched connections of box sections. Some rationalization of these design rules is proposed, and an alternative approach to design for web crippling, which is compatible with recent code revisions for web strength in wide-flange or I sections, is also suggested.