Cyclic performance of flange-plate connection to box column with finger shaped plate

Abstract

The objective of using the flange plate connection as one of the most popular indirect connections to the built-up box column is to avoid using long plates. In deep beams, the need to provide sufficient length to fillet welds necessitates using of long flange plates, which may cause brittle failure due to increasing the bending moments at the face of the column. In the present study, configuring the top flange plate with a finger slot shape type is proposed in order to diminish length of the flange plates. In the proposed configuration, the longitudinal fillet weld was used in flange plates in addition to the transverse fillet and slot weld in the top and bottom flange plates, respectively; in order to provide the required strength for welds. Two full-scale specimens fabricated based on the proposed design methodology were subjected to the cyclic loading. The study results indicated that the flange plate connection with a suggested modified configuration could be prequalified for use in the special moment frames. In a parametric analytical study, the best arrangement of the longitudinal as well as the transverse fillet weld in a top flange plate was proposed for flange plate connections.