Experimental and numerical studies on ultimate strength behaviour of SCS sandwich beams with UHPFRC

Abstract

This paper firstly developed steel-UHPFRC-steel sandwich composite beams (SUSSCBs). Four-point bending tests were then performed on 11 SUSSCBs to evaluate their ultimate strength behaviours. The investigated key parameters included strength of UHPFRC, faceplate thickness, spacing of studs, and shear span ratio. Test results revealed that all 11 SUSSCBs failed in flexure mode even for SUSSCBs with short shear span ratio of 2.4–3.3 due to the high transverse shear resistance and faceplate-concrete bonding provided by the UHPFRC. The faceplate thickness exhibited significant influences on ultimate strength behaviour of SUSSCBs. Meanwhile, strength of UHPFRC, spacing of studs, and shear span ratio exhibited limited influences on failure modes and ultimate strength behaviours of SUSSCBs. Detailed finite element models were then established using general software package ABAQUS. The developed numerical models offered detailed simulation on geometric and material nonlinearities, connectors, and interactions among different interacting components in SUSSCBs. Validations against reported test results proved the capabilities of developed numerical models on simulations of ultimate strength behaviours of SUSSCBs. These test and numerical studies provided comprehensive understanding on ultimate strength behaviour of SUSSCBs.