FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSES OF HIGH STRENGTH COLD-FORMED SUPACEE ® SECTIONS IN SHEAR

The paper will describe finite element analyses using the program ABAQUS of SupaCee ® Sections in Shear. These high strength (450 MPa) C-profile steel sections contain additional return lips and web stiffeners which enhance the bending and shear capacity of the sections. They are used widely in Australia as purlins in roof and wall systems. The results of nonlinear analyses by the finite element method (FEM) depend heavily on the imperfections assumed for the analysis of the thin-walled members. Different buckling modes (Mode 1 Anti-Symmetric and Mode 2 Symmetric) are assumed with different magnitude levels of imperfection as proposed by Camotim in Portugal and Schafer in the USA. The paper summarises the results of the finite element nonlinear simulations of the shear tests on SupaCee ® sections performed at the University of Sydney and described in a separate paper. The FEM results are compared with the tests to calibrate the imperfection magnitudes and modes against the tests. Conclusions regarding the size and type of imperfection are made in the paper. This paper presents the modeling and analysis of the experimental specimens of V test series by using the Finite Element Method (FEM) program ABAQUS. The effect of initial geometric imperfection has been investigated. Experimental data from (7) was utilized to evaluate the performance of the FE model. The accurate results of the numerical simulation show that the finite element analysis can be utilized to predict the ultimate loads which include the post-buckling behavior of cold-formed purlin in shear.