Effect of self‐compacting concrete infill on the flexural behavior of hollow channel sections: Experimental and numerical studies

Abstract

Use of hollow cold‐formed steel (CFS) sections has gained popularity in the construction of light industrial and commercial structures. However, their overall load carrying capacity under flexure can be severely affected due to the possible buckling failure modes. Addition of concrete as an infill material for hollow CFS sections can significantly improve their overall performance by resisting their inward local buckling. In this paper, the effectiveness of self‐compacting concrete (SCC) as an infill material for hollow channel sections (HCS) is investigated under flexure. In total, nine full‐scale hollow channel sections with and without SCC infill are tested to understand the effect of different parameters namely (i) width to depth ratio, (ii) section thickness, and (iii) developed length. In addition, a detailed nonlinear finite element (FE) modeling was performed using the software ABAQUS. Moreover, an analytical investigation was performed to determine the ultimate moment capacity of SCC infilled sections using the strain compatibility procedure. Test results revealed that the addition of SCC infill helped in increasing the ultimate moment resistance by more than 100% when compared to the specimens with no infill. Moreover, the local buckling resistance of HCS is significantly improved due to the addition of SCC infill. The validated analytical and finite element models were used for performing an extensive parametric investigation.

A Critical Review of Cold-Formed Steel Built-Up Composite Columns with Geopolymer Concrete Infill

“…Kumar et al [55] conducted an experiment on rectangular and square hollow structural steel with and without infill under compression and flexure, and the results obtained from the experimental work demonstrated the effect of composite action in building a better structural component. Kenarangi et al [56] investigated the composite action between steel casing and concrete shafts in foundations, showing that the existing friction coefficient was able to develop a composite strength exceeding theoretical calculations.…”