Flexural tests and behavior of multi-celled corrugated-plate CFST members

Abstract

Multi-celled corrugated-plate concrete-filled steel tubular (MC-CFST) member is an innovative type of composite member in engineering structures, which consists of steel corrugated plates with infilled concrete and concrete-filled steel tubes (CFSTs). In this paper, the flexural behavior of MC-CFST members was investigated through experimental, numerical and analytical studies. Firstly, 8 MC-CFST flexural members were designed and tested under mid-span loading. Representative experimental phenomena, failure modes and test results were reported. Secondly, a refined finite element (FE) model was established and a numerical parametric study was conducted to investigate the flexural behavior of MC-CFST members. From the results of tests and numerical simulations, it was found that the thickness and width of steel corrugated plate had significant effects on the flexural behavior of MC-CFST members, yet the effects of steel tube thickness and width of CFST were insignificant. This indicated that the geometrical parameters of steel corrugated plate were essential for the flexural behavior of MC-CFST members. Finally, an analytical study on the flexural behavior of MC-CFST members was performed. Then, prediction formulas of initial flexural stiffness and ultimate flexural bearing capacity were proposed. Based on the verifications against experimental and numerical results, the prediction formulas were proved to be accurate.