Numerical modelling of concrete-filled lean duplex slender stainless steel tubular stub columns

Major technological advances in materials processing have led to the development of duplex stainless steels with exceptional mechanical properties. Duplexes have great potential for expanding future structural design possibilities, enabling a reduction in section sizes leading to lighter structures. The duplex grades offer combination of higher strength than austenitics as well as a great majority of carbon steels with similar or superior corrosion resistance. However, high nickel prices have more recently led to a demand for lean duplexes with low nickel content, such as grade EN 1.4162. Extensive work is needed to include the lean duplex grade EN 1.4162, into design standards such as EN 1993-1-4 and ENV 1994-1-1. Accordingly, finite element modelling for concrete-filled lean duplex slender stainless steel tubular stub columns of Grade EN 1.4162 is presented in this paper. The paper is predominantly concerned with two parameters: cross-section shape and concrete compressive strength, which have not yet been investigated. The non-linear displacement analysis of the columns was constructed herein based on the confined concrete model provided by Hu et al. (2003) [15]. The behaviour of the columns was investigated using a range of concrete cylinder strengths (25–100 MPa). The overall depth-to-width ratios (aspect ratio) varied from 1.0 to 1.8. The depth-to-plate thickness ratio of the tube sections varied from 60 to 90. The concrete-filled lean duplex slender stainless steel tubular columns were subjected to uniform axial compression over the concrete and stainless steel tube to force the entire section to undergo the same deformations by blocking action. The ABAQUS 6.6 program, as a finite element package, is used in the current work. The results showed that the design rules specified in the ASCE are highly conservative for square and rectangular concrete-filled lean duplex slender stainless steel stub columns while they are conservative in the case of European specifications. A new design strength is, therefore, proposed that is accurately found to represent the behaviour of concrete-filled lean duplex stainless steel tubular stub columns.     

Experimental and numerical studies of lean duplex stainless steel beams

Stainless steel is well suited to a range of engineering applications owing to its durability and favourable mechanical properties. The most widely used grades of stainless steel are from the austenitic family and typically contain around 18% chromium and 8%-11% nickel — these grades have a relatively high initial material cost, due, in part, to their high nickel content, and a nominal yield strength (in the annealed condition) of around 220 N/mm². A new, low nickel grade of stainless steel (UNS 32101/EN 1.4162), commonly referred to as ‘lean duplex’, has been developed, that offers over two times the strength of the familiar austenitic grades and at approximately half the initial cost — this lean duplex stainless steel appears well suited to load-bearing applications in construction. This paper reports material and 3-point bending tests on lean duplex stainless steel hollow sections. The 3-point bending tests were replicated by finite element (FE) analysis and, upon validation of the numerical models, parametric studies were conducted to assess the effect of key parameters such as cross-section aspect ratio, cross-section slenderness and moment gradient on the strength and deformation capacity of lean duplex stainless steel beams. Based on both the experimental and numerical results, appropriate slenderness limits and design rules, suitable for incorporation into structural stainless steel design standards, have been proposed.     

Testing and numerical modelling of lean duplex stainless steel hollow section columns

Stainless steels are employed in a wide range of structural applications. The austenitic grades, particularly EN 1.4301 and EN 1.4401, and their low-carbon variants EN 1.4307 and EN 1.4404, are the most commonly used within construction, and these typically contain around 8%–11% nickel. The nickel represents a large portion of the total material cost and thus high nickel prices and price volatility have a strong bearing on both the cost and price stability of stainless steel. While austenitic stainless steel remains the most favourable material choice in many applications, greater emphasis is now being placed on the development of alternative grades with lower nickel content. In this study, the material behaviour and compressive structural response of a lean duplex stainless steel (EN 1.4162), which contains approximately 1.5% nickel, are examined. A total of eight stub column tests and twelve long column tests on lean duplex stainless steel square (SHS) and rectangular hollow sections (RHS) are reported. Precise measurements of material and geometric properties of the test specimens were also made, including the assessment of local and global geometric imperfections. The experimental studies were supplemented by finite element analysis, and parametric studies were performed to generate results over a wider range of cross-sectional and member slenderness. Both the experimental and numerical results were used to assess the applicability of the Eurocode 3: Part 1-4 provisions regarding the Class 3 slenderness limit and effective width formula for internal elements in compression and the column buckling curve for hollow sections to lean duplex structural components. Comparisons between the structural performance of lean duplex stainless steel and that of other more commonly used stainless steel grades are also presented, showing lean duplex stainless steel to be an attractive choice for structural applications.     

FRP strengthening of lean duplex stainless steel hollow sections subjected to web crippling

This paper presents the experimental and numerical investigations of lean duplex stainless steel hollow sections subjected to web crippling. The test specimens were strengthened with different fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP). The web crippling tests were conducted under end-two-flange, interior-two-flange, end-one-flange and interior-one-flange loading conditions. A series of web crippling tests was conducted. The investigation was focused on the effects of surface treatment, web slenderness, different adhesives and FRPs for the strengthening of lean duplex stainless steel hollow sections against web crippling. The lean duplex stainless steel type EN 1.4162 was used in the investigation. Two different surface treatments, three different adhesives and six different FRPs were investigated in this study. The tests were performed on five different sizes of square and rectangular hollow sections that covered a wide range of web slenderness ratio from 8.1 to 57.3. Three different failure modes were observed in the tests of the strengthened specimens, namely the adhesion, interlaminar failure of FRP plate and combination of adhesion and interlaminar failure of FRP plate. Finite element models have been developed and verified against the test results of the specimens subjected to two-flange loading conditions.     

Experimental investigation of cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel beam-columns

This paper describes a test program on cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel members in combined compression and minor axis bending. The test specimens were cold-rolled from flat strips of lean duplex stainless steel grade EN 1.4162. In this study, square and rectangular hollow sections were compressed at different eccentricities, in order to obtain a beam-column interaction curve for each series of tests. Initial overall geometric imperfections of the members were measured prior to testing. The ultimate loads and the failure modes of each specimen were obtained. The observed failure modes include local buckling, flexural buckling and interaction of local and flexural buckling. The test strengths obtained from this study and other available data were compared with the design strengths predicted by the American Specification, Australian/New Zealand Standard and European Code for stainless steel structures. It should be noted that these specifications do not cover the material of lean duplex stainless steel. Therefore, the suitability of the beam-column design rules in these specifications for lean duplex stainless steel is assessed in this study. Generally, these specifications are capable of predicting the beam-column strengths of the lean duplex stainless steel test specimens, and the design rules in the specifications are considered to be reliable. It is observed that the European Code generally provides quite conservative predictions for the beam-column specimens compared to the American Specification and Australian/New Zealand Standard predictions.     

Discussion on the use of stainless steel in constructions in view of sustainability

Recent years have seen an increase in the use of stainless steel in buildings, mainly owing to its corrosion properties and therefore long service life. Among stainless steels, ferritic and lean duplex grades are characterized by low nickel content resulting in a more cost-stable and economic material compared to austenitic stainless steels. These grades have comparable (or even higher) strength than carbon steel and good corrosion resistance at lower cost. That is why, lately, they have been more often used in structural components. In this paper, attention is first paid to the advantages associated with the use of stainless steel in recent construction projects in view of sustainability. Second, life cycle analysis and the background of the new European standard EN 15804 are introduced, including module D, which allows credits to be taken now for the eventual reuse or recycling of material in the future, at the end-of-life stage. Life cycle inventories of stainless steel products (cold-rolled coils and quarto plate) are presented. Depending on the fraction of material recovered at the end of the lifespan, two potential impacts (Primary Energy Demand and Global Warming Potential) are presented for four grades: 1.4301 (AISI 304) and 1.4401 (AISI 316) austenitic grades, 1.4016 (AISI 430) ferritic grade and 1.4462 (AISI 2205) duplex grade. The influence of module D is underlined.     

Tests of pin-ended cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns

This paper describes a test program on cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns compressed between pinned ends. Two square hollow sections and four rectangular hollow sections were tested at different column lengths. The material properties of the test specimens were obtained from tensile coupon tests and stub column tests. The test specimens were cold-rolled from flat strips of lean duplex stainless steel (EN1.4162). The column specimens were concentrically loaded between pinned ends. The ultimate loads and the failure modes of each column are presented. The American, Australian/New Zealand and European specifications for stainless steel structures are assessed by comparing the column test strengths and available data in the literatures with the design strengths. It should be noted that these specifications do not cover the material of lean duplex stainless steel. A reliability analysis was carried out to assess the current design rules of stainless steel for lean duplex material. Generally, the specifications are able to predict the strengths of the tested columns. The design approach of using full cross-section area and material properties obtained by stub column tests for all classes of sections including slender sections was recommended. This recommended design approach does not require section classification and calculation of effective area, and provides a more accurate and less scattered prediction than those using the current design rules.     

Experimental and numerical investigation of cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel flexural members

Experimental and numerical investigation of cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel flexural members is presented in this paper. The test specimens were cold-rolled from flat plates of lean duplex stainless steel with the nominal 0.2% proof stress of 450 MPa. Specimens of square and rectangular hollow sections subjected to both major and minor axes bending were tested. A finite element model has been created and verified against the test results using the material properties obtained from coupon tests. It is shown that the model can accurately predict the behaviour of lean duplex stainless steel flexural members. An extensive parametric study was carried out using the verified finite element model. The test and numerical results as well as the available data on lean duplex beams are compared with design strengths predicted by various existing design rules, such as the American Specification, Australian/New Zealand Standard, European Code and direct strength method for cold-formed stainless steel. Reliability analysis was performed to evaluate the reliability of the design rules. It is shown that these current design rules provide conservative predictions to the design strengths of lean duplex stainless steel flexural members. In this study, modified design rules on the American Specification, Australian/New Zealand Standard, European Code and direct strength method are proposed, which are shown to improve the accuracy of these design rules in a reliable manner.     

Buckling of fixed-ended concrete-filled steel columns under axial compression

In recent years, due to a relatively high price increase of nickel alloys, there is an increase in demand for lean duplex stainless steel (LDSS) with a low nickel content of ~1.5%, such as grade EN 1.4162. LDSS offers roughly twice the strength compared to austenitic stainless steels and has great potential for expanding future structural possibilities, enabling a reduction in the section sizes leading to lighter structures. This paper reports the buckling behavior of fixed-ended concrete-filled LDSS tubular (CFDSST) columns with L-, T-, and +-shape (Non-Rectangular Sections or NRSs) sections and a representative square section with varying lengths through Finite Element (FE) analysis. The purpose is to compare and assess the strength and deformation characteristics as well as the failure modes of such columns. It is seen that concrete-filled tubular columns with NRSs offered a better performance for all lengths considered, especially the T-shaped and +-shaped sections, in terms of strength. The influence of the cross-sectional shapes on the ε _u becomes less significant with increasing λ, but becomes increasingly significant with decreasing λ. The design standards show over conservative results for square and L-shape sections and conservative for T-shape and +-shape sections.     

Structural performance of cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns

The structural performance of cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns was investigated. A wide range of finite element analysis on square and rectangular hollow sections and other available data, with a total number of 259 specimens, were considered. An accurate finite element model has been created to simulate the pin-ended cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns. Extensive parametric study was carried out using the validated finite element model. The column strengths predicted from the parametric study together with the available data are compared with the design strengths calculated from various existing design rules for cold-formed stainless steel structures. It is shown that the existing design rules, except for the ASCE Specification as well as the stub column and full area approach, are conservative. Modifications are proposed for the AS/NZS Standard, EC3 Code, and direct strength method. Reliability analysis was performed to assess the existing and modified design rules. It is also shown that the modified design rules are able to provide a more accurate and reliable predictions for lean duplex stainless steel columns. In this study, it is suggested that the modified design rules in the AS/NZS Standard and the modified direct strength method to be used in designing cold-formed lean duplex stainless steel columns.     

Analysis of circular concrete-filled double skin tubular slender columns with external stainless steel tubes

This paper investigates the strength and behaviour of concrete-filled double skin steel tubular (CFDST) slender columns under axial compression. The lean duplex stainless steel material (EN 1.4162) which has recently gained significant attention is considered herein as the external jacket of such columns. Finite element (FE) analyses of several CFDST columns are conducted. Careful consideration is taken in the modelling for the concrete behaviour, for which both of the compressive and the tensile behaviours and the non-linear behaviour due to cracking are fully considered. The accuracy of the current FE models is ensured through the comparison with the existing columns in literature. A parametric study is then conducted to investigate the behaviour of such columns under different affecting factors; the slenderness ratio, the concrete confinement effect, the hollow ratio, the concrete compressive strength and the thickness ratio. The behavioural differences between intermediate length and very long CFDST columns are carefully addressed. Analytically obtained ultimate strengths are compared with design strengths calculated by European and American specifications. European design strength is found to give better predictions compared to the American specifications. However, it is shown that both strengths cannot be used in design because they overestimate the ultimate strengths and thereby do not satisfy the safety requirements. Therefore, a modification is suggested to the European design model which is shown to be able to estimate the compressive resistance of the CFDST columns more accurately than other methods.     

Performance of composite girders strengthened using carbon fibre reinforced polymer laminates

This paper highlights the structural performance of steel–concrete composite girders strengthened using advanced composite laminates. Nonlinear 3-D finite element models have been developed to investigate the flexural behaviour and load carrying capacity of the girders. The composite laminates comprised carbon fibre reinforced polymer (CFRP) plates and sheets as well as steel reinforced polymer (SRP) sheets. The elastic modulus and ultimate tensile strength of the laminates varied from low to high 60–300 GPa and 700–3100 MPa, respectively. The nonlinear material properties of the strengthened composite girder components comprising concrete, structural steel beam, reinforcement bars, adhesive and composite laminates were incorporated in the finite element model. The interfaces between the composite girder components were also considered allowing the contact and bond behaviour to be modelled and the different components to retain its profile during the deformation of the strengthened composite girder. Furthermore, the load-slip characteristic of headed stud shear connectors was incorporated in the finite element models based on previous experimental and numerical investigations conducted by the author. The finite element models have been validated against published tests on composite girders strengthened using different advanced composite laminates and having different cross-section geometries, lengths, layers of laminates with different elastic moduli and ultimate tensile strengths, concrete strengths and structural steel strengths. The load carrying capacity of strengthened composite girders, load–vertical displacement behaviour and failure modes were predicted from the finite element analyses and compared against test results. Parametric studies were conducted to study the effects on the load carrying capacity and structural behaviour of strengthened composite girders owing to the change in the composite laminate elastic modulus, number of laminate layers, concrete strengths and structural steel strengths. The study has shown that the increase in the load carrying capacity and ductility of strengthened composite girders due to the increase in steel beam strength is significant with high strength concrete slab. Also, it has been shown that the increase in concrete strength offers a considerable increase in the initial stiffness of strengthened composite girders, while the increase in structural steel strength offers a considerable increase in the stiffness of strengthened composite girder in the post-yielding stage.     

弯剪共同作用下不锈钢薄腹梁承载性能试验研究

为研究不锈钢薄腹梁在弯矩和剪力共同作用下的承载性能,进行了6根焊接工字形截面不锈钢梁的试验研究.结果 表明,所有梁试件的破坏形态为结合了腹板剪切屈曲和受压区板件局部鼓曲的弯剪联合屈曲.建立精细有限元数值模型对试验过程进行模拟,同时考虑了不锈钢材料、几何双非线性,局部几何初始缺陷和焊接残余应力的影响.基于得出的试验和有限...     

Numerical analysis of pultruded GFRP box girders supporting adhesively-bonded concrete deck in flexure

This paper presents the modeling of pultruded glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) box girders consisting of built-up hat-shape sections and flat plates. The study addresses the effect of a thin concrete deck adhesively bonded to the top GFRP plate on flexural performance, as well as the behavior under positive and negative bending that simulates continuous girders. A three-dimensional finite element (FE) approach is proposed to predict the behavior of the GFRP system, including experimental validation. The efficacy of the girders is compared with other metallic box girders: carbon steel and corrosion-resistant metals, namely, stainless steel and aluminum. Failure is generally due to debonding of the concrete deck, and as such, the ultimate strength is not affected much by the girder material used. The study examines the single girder behavior as well as girder-group systems, to assess load distribution. It is shown that the AASHTO LRFD approach for load distribution can reasonably be used for the proposed girder systems. Design recommendations as to material selection are addressed to better use the girder system.     

不锈钢薄腹梁受剪性能试验研究

通过对7根不锈钢薄腹梁进行受剪性能试验研究,分析了梁腹板的剪切屈曲和屈曲后强度。结果表明：所有梁均发生剪切屈曲破坏,薄腹板中形成拉力带,上翼缘和横向加劲肋中出现塑性铰;根据腹板表面应变和侧向鼓曲变形测得的剪切屈曲应力均低于理论计算的弹性剪切屈曲应力;梁的受剪承载力显著高于腹板剪切屈曲时的荷载,具有较高的屈曲后强度;梁端设置封头肋板可以提高梁的受剪承载力。基于得出的试验结果及现有其他试验数据,对两种考虑腹板屈曲后强度的受剪承载力计算方法进行评估,我国GB 50017—2017《钢结构设计标准》中的公式仅考虑了腹板的受剪承载力,其计算结果总体偏于保守,但是对腹板高厚比较小(λs<1.5)的不锈钢薄腹梁,受剪承载力计算偏于不安全,且计算结果离散性较大;EN 1993-1-4中的计算公式中同时考虑了腹板和翼缘的受剪承载力,其计算结果偏于保守且离散性较小。     

冷成型双相不锈钢截面材料特性

给出了6个不同截面冷成型双相不锈钢的特性,其中2个为圆形中空截面,4个为矩形中空截面。试样为冷轧双相不锈钢带。确定方形和矩形中空截面高强度冷成型双相不锈钢的材料特性。对每种型材的薄弱和转角处进行拉伸试验,由此测量每种型材的弹性模量、0.2%弹性极限、1.0%弹性极限、抗张强度、断裂延伸率和Ramberg-Osgood参数(n)。通过短柱试验获得冷轧状态全截面的材料特性。测量6种型材的初始局部几何缺陷,绘制每种型材含初始几何缺陷的横截面图。采用断面法测量150×50×2.5截面的残余应力,测量并绘制截面上薄膜屈曲残余应力分布图。此外,给出适用于短柱的有限元模型,并与试验结果进行对比。将不锈钢短柱的试验强度与美国规范、澳大利亚/新西兰规范和欧洲规范的设计强度进行对比。总体看来,三种规范的计算结果都较为保守,其中欧洲规范的计算结果最为保守。     

Investigation on the Collapse Behavior of Diagonal Stiffened Composite Plate Girders Subjected to Shear Loading

In this study, a new analytical method is presented to estimate the shear capacity of diagonally stiffened steel–concrete composite plate girders. This method is formulated based on tension field action in steel girder web and failure mechanism of concrete slab deck. To validate the accuracy of the proposed method, the obtained results are compared with three-dimensional finite element analysis of composite plate girders with different configuration of stiffeners. The results of analytical and numerical investigations indicate that the proposed method can accurately estimate the ultimate shear capacity of composite plate girders. In addition, it is shown that the diagonal stiffeners on one hand can reduce the buckling effects of shear panel of girders and on the other hand can increase the strength of elastic shear buckling and ultimate shear capacity of girders well in comparison with the unstiffened thin steel plate girders.     

双相不锈钢空心截面梁的极限抗弯承载力分析

双相不锈钢材料的成功研发有效地克服了普通不锈钢初始材料成本偏高的缺点,使不锈钢在结构方面的应用有了更大的发展,引起了国际学者的注意。利用国际上最新发表的有关双相不锈钢UNS 32101/EN1.4162空心截面梁的试验资料,对其极限抗弯承载力进行了初步分析,并讨论了构件材料强度、宽厚比及高宽比对其抗弯承载力的影响。通过分析得知,现有Eurocode 3:Part 1—4中第3类受弯截面承载力设计公式不能准确计算此型号双相不锈钢梁的抗弯承载力,且已有的宽厚比限值过于保守。     

On the hysteretic behavior of trapezoidally corrugated steel shear walls

At present, corrugated plates have numerous applications such as web of plate girders and aerospace applications. Higher out‐of‐plane stiffness and initial elastic strength of the corrugated plates compared with flat plates are reasons for consideration. This study investigates the behavior of trapezoidally corrugated steel plate shear walls (TCSPSWs) under monotonic and cyclic loadings. Finite element analyses that include both material and geometric nonlinearities are employed for the examination. The results from finite element analysis are verified through tested specimen findings. Moreover, the behavior of the steel shear walls with the flat infill panels and the corrugated plate infill panels is compared. The results show that explicit dynamic analysis is the most suitable analysis for the TCSPSWs under quasi‐static loading. Furthermore, although strength of the TCSPSWs obtained from the finite element analysis and the test are fully coincident in elastic region, nonetheless, they are fairly coincident in elastic–plastic and plastic region. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Parametric Study on Ultimate Strength of Four-bolted Connections with Cold-formed Carbon Steel

The curling(out-of-plane deformation in the plate thickness direction) influence on the ultimate strength of cold-formed stainless steel bolted connection has been investigated and modified equations for predicting the ultimate strength considering strength reduction caused by curling through finite element analysis have been suggested by previous researchers. In this paper, single shear four-bolted connections fabricated with thin-walled carbon steel commonly utilized in the light-weight structural members of building were tested under static shear in order to investigate block shear fracture behavior and curling influence on the ultimate strength and fracture mode. Main variables of specimens are plate thickness and end distance parallel to the direction of loading. Curling in the perpendicular direction of applied force also occurred for bolted connections with a relatively long end distance and thin plate. The curling occurrence caused a sudden strength drop and reduced the ultimate strength of bolted connections. Current design specifications such as AISC, AIJ and AISI for block shear strength were summarized and it is known that design equations did not provide the accurate prediction of ultimate strength and fracture mode for thin-walled carbon steel bolted connections. Strength reduction by curling and the condition of curling occurrence were investigated through an additional parametric finite element analysis. As a result, revised strength equations for block shear fracture and bearing fracture were suggested considering fracture path and curling effect and their validity was also verified.