Impact of Stiffener Configurations on the Bending Behavior of Thin Stainless-Steel Plates: Experimental and Numerical Study

Abstract

This study investigates the influence of stiffeners and their positioning on the bending behavior of thin stainless-steel plates. Three experimental models were employed: a simple un-stiffened plate, a plate with one stiffener and a plate with two cross stiffeners with clamped boundary conditions. Numerical analysis with ABAQUS software and the C3D8IH solid finite element is carried out and the obtained results are compared to those found experimentally. The findings reveal that the introduction of stiffeners significantly enhances the structural rigidity of the plates, leading to reduced displacements under applied loads. Very good efficiency was observed where the accuracy of the numerical model improved with increasing load, particularly for the cross-stiffened configuration. The error rates between the numerical and experimental results decreased from 19.9336% at lower loads to as low as 0.1675% at higher loads, underscoring the effectiveness of stiffeners in minimizing deflection and aligning theoretical predictions with the experimental outcomes. This research provides valuable insights into the design of stiffened plates for applications requiring enhanced load-bearing capacity and reduced deformations.