Assessment of the dynamic effect of steel frame due to sudden middle column loss

The term progressive collapse is typically used to refer to the spread of an initial local failure within a structure. This paper proposes a new and simple method to calculate of the dynamic load amplification factor due to sudden column loss within a progressive collapse event in a structure. The conceptual basis of this method is the ability of the remaining structure after column loss to transfer the kinetic energy. Five principal stages are used in this research to achieve its purpose: (1) achieving the nonlinear static response of the remained structure to load using finite element method, (2) using the conceptual ductility at the maximum level of dynamic deformation to calculate the amplification factor, (3) designing a flowchart to determine the dynamic load amplification factor versus a ratio load, (4) achieving a series equation based on the statistical analyses to calculate dynamic load amplification factor and (5) designing a simplified graph using the results achieved from the previous stages. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.