Formulas for Shear‐Lag Effect of T‐, I‐ and Box Beams

Based on an empirical matching of analytical results for stresses in wide flanges obtained using the plane stress elasticity given by Song, simplified empirical formulas and some diagrams for the determination of the shear-lag effect in simple beams under various loading with I, and box cross sections are presented. For T-beams, the calculation can be performed using an equivalent I-beam, according to the formulas in this paper. For continuous beams, the results can be obtained from the analysis of a corresponding basic simple beam formed by removing all interior supports using superposition. Some simple and essential formulas are presented, by which the most important features of the shear-lag effect for a simple or continuous beam can be estimated quickly in engineering design. To demonstrate the use of the empirical formulas and to verify their accuracy, comparisons of results for typical numerical examples are given.