Theoretical and finite element analysis of the two-way PSSDB floor system

Abstract

The profiled steel sheet dry board (PSSDB) system is a lightweight composite structure which consists of profiled steel sheeting connected to dry board by self- tapping and self-drilling screws. It can be used as flooring, walling and roofing panels. This paper presents the investigation of the two-way flexural behavior of the PSSDB floor system. The study employs both theoretical and non-linear finite element (FE) analysis. The FE approach has been done using ABAQUS software. While the theoretical one was conducted using an elastic full interaction analysis. The obtained results were verified against experimental tests and it was shown that both the theoretical and FE solutions are adequate enough to predict the behavior of PSSDB system. After that, several parametric studies have been conducted to have a better comprehension of the factors that affect the behavior of the system. It was found that the changing the dry board depth can enhance the behavior up to 23%. However changing the type of board has a minor effect on the elastic stage and it starts increasing in the plastic period up to 14%. Also, it was shown that changing the thickness of steel sheeting can affect the performance by approximately 18%. Screw spacing has an impact on the strength of the system up to 9.6%. Finally, applying line load has demonstrated a better two-way action than point load.