Section moment capacity tests of hollow flange steel plate girders

Hollow flange steel plate girders (HFSPG) are built-up hollow flange I-girders formed by welding currently available cold-formed rectangular hollow sections (RHS) to a web plate. It is intended to gain the advantages of both I-sections and hollow sections with additional desired performances due to its orientation. HFSPGs can meet the increased demand of an effective member for long span applications. Further, the introduced HFSPG will be an innovative, efficient and cost effective replacement for conventionally used universal beams (UB) and welded beams (WB). Although the HFSPG provides favorable properties, it is vulnerable to buckling failures which can limit its flexural capacity. Therefore, an investigation was conducted to study the section moment capacities of HFSPGs using both experiments and finite element analyses. The ultimate moment capacities from the tests and analyses were compared with the predictions from the current design rules. This paper presents the details of the experimental and finite element studies and the results.