Structural Testing and Design of Wire Arc Additively Manufactured Square Hollow Sections
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 147, Issue 12
Abstract
Wire arc additive manufacturing (WAAM) is a method of metal three-dimensional (3D) printing that has the potential for a significant impact on the construction industry due to its ability to produce large parts with reasonable printing times and costs. However, there is currently a lack of fundamental data on the performance of structural elements produced using this method of manufacturing. Seeking to bridge this gap, the compressive behavior and resistance of WAAM square hollow sections (SHS) are investigated in this paper. In a previous study by the authors, testing reported of sheet material produced in the same manner as the studied SHS is first summarized. The production, measurement, and testing of a series of stainless steel SHS stub columns are then described. Regular cross-section profiles were chosen to isolate the influence of 3D printing and enable direct comparisons to be made against equivalent sections produced using traditional methods of manufacturing. A range of cross-section sizes and thicknesses were considered to achieve variations in the local cross-sectional slenderness of the tested specimens, allowing the influence of local buckling to be assessed. Repeat tests enabled the variability in response between specimens to be evaluated; a total of 14 SHS stub columns of seven different local slendernesses was tested, covering all cross-section classes of AISC 370 and Eurocode 3. Advanced noncontact measurement techniques were employed to determine the as-built geometric properties, while digital image correlation measurements were used to provide detailed insight into the deformation characteristics of the test specimens. Owing to the higher geometric variability of WAAM relative to conventional forming processes, the tested 3D printed stub columns were found to exhibit more variable capacities between repeat specimens than is generally displayed by stainless steel SHS. Comparisons of the stub column test results with existing structural design rules highlight the need to allow for the weakening effect of the geometric undulations that are inherent to the WAAM process in order to achieve safe-sided strength predictions.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
This experimental program was possible thanks to funding and support from the Data Centric Engineering program at the Alan Turing Institute (ATI), funded by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation. This research also benefitted from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) funding under Grant No. EP/R010161/1 and from the UK Collaboratorium for Research on Infrastructure and Cities (UKCRIC) Coordination Node EPSRC grant under EP/R017727/1. The authors would also like to acknowledge the contributions of William Sharpe, Rory Jones, Wing Wan, Anna Schumacher, Tim Lui, Gordon Herbert, Paul Crudge, Trevor Stickland, Les Clark, Alfredo Olivo, Dave de Ruyter, and the late Ron Millward from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and of Ingrid Logan and Saadiqah Rahman from the Dyson School of Design Engineering at Imperial College London in the conducted experimental program.
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Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 147 • Issue 12 • December 2021
Copyright
© 2021 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 27, 2020
Accepted: Jul 22, 2021
Published online: Sep 30, 2021
Published in print: Dec 1, 2021
Discussion open until: Feb 28, 2022
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