On the behaviour and Eurocode design of T-section columns, beams and beam-columns with slender webs

Abstract

This paper summarizes the authors' work on the buckling behaviour of T-section beam-columns, and describes an extensive numerical study, as well as comparisons with and discussions of the current Eurocode 3 design rules. The study highlights the significance of defining appropriate buckling reduction factors for the basic local and global torsional and lateral-torsional buckling modes. In the case of bending moments, the significance of the sign of the bending diagram is highlighted. The relevance of the centroid shift anticipated by the Eurocode 3 (EC3) effective section approach to local buckling is discussed, as well as the influence of bending moments – and their sign – on the buckling strength of beam-columns. The importance of classification for the Eurocode design rules for beam-columns is discussed. Finally, a proposal for a simplification and improvement of the EC3 rules is made, followed by an outlook on possible code amendments and needed future research.