Experimental and numerical analysis of stiffened curved plates as bottom flanges of steel bridges

Abstract

This paper deals with the experimental and numerical evaluation of the buckling behaviour and ultimate resistance of stiffened transversally curved panels subjected to uniform axial compression. Furthermore, a verification procedure for curved stiffened panels is proposed that gives a good estimation of the maximum loads obtained from experimental and numerical tests. The procedure is in line with the design methodology of EN 1993-1-5, accounting also for panel curvature. Nine large-scale tests were performed on longitudinally and transversally stiffened plates made of high strength steel, namely S500 and S700. They were subjected to compressive stresses up to collapse. The nine specimens comprised of flat and curved plates that differed in material grade and geometric parameters, such as panel thickness, aspect ratio, size and shape of stiffeners. The effects of different parameters on the plate's resistance to pure compression are discussed. Moreover, a numerical model built in the general-purpose code ABAQUS is presented and verified against the test results regarding initial stiffness, ultimate resistance and failure mode. Numerical simulations (FEA), based on the test panel geometry, the measured initial geometric imperfections and elasto-plastic material characteristics from tensile tests, demonstrate very good agreement with experimental results.