Tapered plate girders under shear : tests and numerical research

Abstract This paper presents an experimental and numerical research on tapered steel plate girders subjected to shear. Experimental tests included four small-scale tapered steel plate girders. Research was focused on both, critical shear load and ultimate shear resistance. Moreover, the post-buckling behaviour of tapered plates was studied. Further, some parametric studies with various geometries of tapered panels were done in order to find the most favourable design situations. The analysed parameters were: the panel aspect ratio, the inclined flange angle, the web and the flange slenderness. Numerical simulations allowed distinguishing four different typologies of tapered plate girders which should be considered separately in design because of their different behaviour. Verification of the simplified procedure for tapered plates proposed in Eurocode EN 1993-1-5 allowed concluding that for some cases the estimation of the ultimate shear resistance is situated on the unsafe side and need to be revised.

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