A new slenderness-based approach for the web crippling design of plain channel steel beams

In this paper, the web crippling strength of cold-formed steel plain channel beams subjected to concentrated loads is evaluated on the basis of numerical models and available test results. The design equations existing in current steel codes display many coefficients, have not theoretical background and overlook the slenderness concept, which is a trademark of safety checking rules related with other failure modes such as column flexural-torsional buckling, web shear buckling and plate buckling. The main objective is to show that such slenderness-based approach is possible for web crippling design. Firstly, some considerations about the web crippling of cold-formed steel beams are drawn and a brief review is made. Secondly, the equations for web crippling design available in current Eurocode 3 and AISI steel codes are described. Then, the numerical model is explained in detail. On the basis of numerical and experimental results, it is shown that an approach based on the slenderness concept leads to fairly good estimates of web crippling load. Finally, some conclusions are drawn.