Tests on Cold-Formed Steel Laced Stub Columns: Axial Strength and Stability Characteristics
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 150, Issue 10
Abstract
The research on cold-formed steel (CFS) built-up columns, which has grown over the past decade, has been instrumental in developing new CFS built-up columns with transversely spaced chords, demonstrating better axial performance than conventional I-type built-up columns. However, previous research findings on CFS laced columns have been limited, with no data available on stub columns. This paper presents the first test program for cold-formed steel laced stub columns using plain channels. The program involved fabricating 12 specimens with a single lacing configuration, connecting lacing elements and end plates to the chords using self-drilling screws, and evaluating the impact of critical parameters on column performance under concentric axial loading. Important variables such as lacing slenderness, end plate length, and transverse chord spacing were examined, with the built-up section’s aspect ratio varying from 0.75 to 1.25. The failure modes, peak strengths, and load-displacement curves of the stub column specimens were used to evaluate their performance. In addition, the study compared strength predictions from the current American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI S100-16) and Eurocode (EN1993-1-3) standards against the test strengths. Unlike slender column axial strength, these current standards predicted the axial strengths of the stub columns better, with an overprediction of less than 5%. It was verified that lacing slenderness and end plate length variation does not change the failure mode in CFS laced stub columns. Further, earlier recommendations on end plate length for CFS laced columns cannot be extended to CFS laced stub columns.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, and code generated or used during the study appear in the published article.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank IIT Delhi and the New Zealand Centre at IIT Delhi for the financial support received for conducting this study under the India-NZ MFIRP Project scheme. The help and support of the Structural Engineering laboratory staff in the Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Delhi, during specimen fabrication and testing are highly appreciated.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 150 • Issue 10 • October 2024
Copyright
© 2024 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 16, 2023
Accepted: May 1, 2024
Published online: Jul 26, 2024
Published in print: Oct 1, 2024
Discussion open until: Dec 26, 2024
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Axial loads
- Cold-formed steel
- Columns
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Engineering mechanics
- Failure modes
- Forensic engineering
- Material mechanics
- Material properties
- Materials engineering
- Metals (material)
- Plates
- Static loads
- Statics (mechanics)
- Steel
- Steel columns
- Strength of materials
- Structural analysis
- Structural behavior
- Structural engineering
- Structural members
- Structural strength
- Structural systems
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