Local Buckling in Cold-Formed Steel Moment-Resisting Bolted Connections: Behavior, Capacity, and Design
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 146, Issue 9
Abstract
The research presented in this paper aimed to investigate local buckling failure occurring adjacent to moment-resisting bolted connections in cold-formed steel back-to-back channel beams connected to a gusset plate through their webs. This failure is a result of a complex stress state originating from the transfer of both shear and bending moment through the web, combined with important shear lag effects. Experimentally validated finite-element models were used, accounting for material nonlinearity, geometric imperfections, and nonlinear bolt bearing behavior. The effects of the cross-sectional shape and thickness of the beam, the bolt group configuration, and the bolt group length were investigated. It was discovered that the detrimental effect of local buckling exponentially decreases when a longer bolt group length is used, when the load is introduced at the connection with a smaller eccentricity relative to the centroid, and when the thickness of the beam is increased. The results of the investigation were employed to develop a practical design equation with a wide range of applicability. Finally, a reliability analysis was performed within the framework of various standards.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are available from the corresponding author by request: material properties data, geometric imperfections data, connector behavior data, and optimization data.
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Grants EP/L019116/1 and EP/M011976/1. The first author was also supported by EPSRC Doctoral Scholarship Grant 1625179.
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Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 146 • Issue 9 • September 2020
Copyright
©2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 24, 2019
Accepted: Mar 2, 2020
Published online: Jun 18, 2020
Published in print: Sep 1, 2020
Discussion open until: Nov 18, 2020
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