10th Interna onal Conference on
Steel and Aluminium Structures (ICSAS24)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 5-7, June, 2024
EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF COLD FORMED STAINLESS STEEL
TUBULAR T-JOINT, WITH AND WITHOUT REINFORCEMENT ON
THE CHORD SIDEWALL
Felipe B. COUTINHO a, André T. SILVAb and Monique C. RODRIGUESb
a
PGECIV - Civil Engineering Graduate Program, UERJ – State University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Email: felipecoutinho@[Link]
b
Structural Engineering Department, UERJ – State University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Emails: tenchini@[Link], [Link]@[Link]
Keywords: Reinforced T-joint; stainless steel; experimental; lateral reinforcement.
Abstract. The present study aims to analyse the performance of a stainless steel T-joint using square
hollow section (SHS), with and without lateral reinforcement. The research describes the experimental
analysis of a fully supported chord and the compression force applied to the brace. Twenty laboratory
tests were conducted to understand the structural behaviour for different configurations, as well as the
influence of lateral reinforcement. The results indicated that, for joints without reinforcement, the
application of the equation specified in the current codes is acceptable, despite not taking full advantage
of the resistance of this material. The use of reinforcement in chord sidewall can result in an increase
of the twice in slender joint – for more compact chords the increase is smaller, around 25% due the
failure in the brace. Adopting the Eurocode equations, in all cases for class 1 and 2, the failure occurs
in the brace, with their results compatible with the experimental study.
1 INTRODUCTION
The stainless steel square hollow section (SHS) provides interesting characteristics in both
structural and aesthetic proprieties being indicated in several civil applications features a
smooth and polished finish, making it highly appealing for architectural applications. In details,
compared to carbon steel, stainless steel offers superior mechanical strength, as well as high
performance against fire and corrosion. Additionally, its reusability contributes to the
environment. Despite its advantages, the stainless steel SHS has been used more frequently in
architectural elements, such as handrails and facades, having reduced application in structural.
However, this paper aims to promote its adoption as a structural component, mainly in trusses,
by experimentally analyzing its joints behavior, especially the T-joints, as shown in Figure 1
and Figure 2. The type of steel adopted in this research is austenitic 304.
Several studies related to SHS joint address the use of carbon steel, with emphasis on
Wardenier’s work [1] in 1982, widely recognized. In his study, he compares the behavior of the
chord sidewall with a column, which can either buckle or yielding. Packer et al. [2] present, in
association with the CIDECT (Committee for International Development and Education on
Construction of Tubular Structures), a guide for the adoption of SHS tubes in joints with
predominantly static loads, which include the lateral reinforcement – in this case its thickness
is added to the chord. Lu et al. [3] defines the failure criterion for the square tubular joint, which
it is stablished that the indentation of the chord face should be less than 3% of the chord width