Finite Element Investigation of the Ultimate Capacity of Hollow-Flange Steel Girders with Web Openings

Abstract

The goal of structural design is to select member sizes that are proportional to thestructural geometry in order to achieve the most cost-effective design. Steel girders weretypically made of webs, flanges and a number of internal stuffeners, the main objectiveof this research is to develop a finite element model to study the effect of the shapes andlocations of openings on the behavior of hollow flange steel plate girders. In this study,seven models were analyzed in two groups. The first group study the effect of webopenings shape openings on the behavior of hollow flange steel plate girders, while thesecond group study the effect of web openings location on the behavior of hollow flangesteel plate girders. The girders are analyzed until the final failure has occurred. Theresults obtained from finite element analysis showed that that the absence of openinghad an important effect on the ultimate load capacity. The ultimate capacity of hollowflange steel plate girder with four squares opening decreased about 5% compared tohollow flanges steel plate girder without openings.