Shear Strength Of Web Panels Research Articles

The shear strength of end web panels of plate girders with tension field action

This paper describes a series of shear tests of plate girders fabricated from steel plates with a nominal yield stress of 235MPa for the web and 315MPa for flanges. The ultimate shear strength and performance of end web panels with a single double-sided transverse stiffener at support of plate girders undergoing a significant tension field action were investigated experimentally and theoretically. According to shear test results, post-buckling strength in the shear buckling mode has a significant effect on the ultimate shear strength of end web panels of plat girders. Design shear strength formulae for the direct strength method (DSM) for end web panels of plate girders were developed based on shear test results. The results verify that DSM shear curves can accurately predict the ultimate shear strength of web panels of plate girders showing a significant post-buckling behavior in the shear buckling mode.

Failure loads of web panels loaded in pure shear

The effect of tension field action on the ultimate shear strength of web panels has been considered using different approaches. These approaches lead to wide range of predicted shear capacities especially for slender web panels that have large web width–thickness ratios. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the actual behavior of web panels loaded in pure shear. Nonlinear analysis has been conducted using three-dimensional finite element model of plate girder web panels. The study covers a wide range of web width–thickness ratios, web-panel aspect ratios as well as flange bending stiffness. Results show that both short as well as long web panels have substantial post local buckling capacities. However, this additional capacity decreases by increasing the web panel aspect ratios. Moreover, the diagonal tension field is often formed off the web panel diagonal. In addition there is no remarkable effect of the flange bending stiffness on the ultimate shear strength. Based on the numerical results an empirical equation is proposed. Finally comparison has been done with AAHSTO, AISC, and Eurocode-3 as well as different theories.

Ultimate shear strength of long web panels

Both the Basler model and the Rockey model developed during the early 1960s and 1970s predict reasonably well the postbuckling strength of plate girder web panels subjected to pure shear for panels having an aspect ratio (stiffener spacing/web depth) less than or equal to 1.5. The accuracy of these models deviates significantly when applied to panels with an aspect ratio equal to or greater than 3.0. The majority of all steel structures in the world have been designed and built based on these two major theories or their derivatives that recognize the reserve strength afforded by tension field action in the postbuckling stage. However, no single theory has ever emerged that explains the seemingly elusive stress distributions present in web panels during postbuckling until Yoo and Lee shed light on the true mechanics of web panel postbuckling behavior in shear. This paper revisits the validity of an arbitrary limit imposed by Basler on the maximum aspect ratio of a transversely stiffened web panel and develops a new method of predicting the ultimate shear strength of web panels with high aspect ratios.