®~00®OO ®(IDO®~

FOR STRUCTURAL HOLLOW SECTIONS IN MECHANICAL APPLICATIONS

CONSTRUCTION WITH HOLLOW STEEL SECTIONS

Edited by: Comite International pour Ie Developpernent et l'Etude de la Construction Tubulaire

Authors: Jaap Wardenier, Delft University of Technology Dipak Dutta, Technical Commission of CIDECT

Noel Yeomans, Chairman CIDECT Joint and Fatigue Working Group Jeffrey A. Packer, University of Toronto

Orner Bucak, University of Karlsruhe

FOR STRUCTURAL HOLLOW SECTIONS IN MECHANICAL APPLICATIONS

J. Wardenier, D. Dutta, N. Yeomans, J. A. Packer, b. Bucak

Verlag TOV Rheinland

Die Deutsche Bibliothek - CIP Einheitsaufnahme

Design guide for structural hollow sections in mechanical applications I red. by: Cornlte International pour Ie Developpernent et l'Etude de la Construction Tubulairej. J. Wardenier ... - K61n: VerI. TUV Rheinland, 1995

(Construction with hollow steel sections) ISBN 3-8249-0302-4

NE: Wardenier, Jaap; Cornite International pour Ie Developpernent et l'Etude de la Construction Tubulaire

ISBN 3-8249-0302-4

© by Verlag TUV Rheinland GmbH, K61n 1995 Entirely made by: Verlag TUV Rheinland GmbH, K61n Printed in Germany 1995

Preface

Structural hollow sections, circular and especially rectangular, have opened up many new possibilities for design and construction in the field of mechanical engineering. Besides the superior physical properties to those of open profiles, which manifest higher buckling, torsional and multiaxial bending resistances, they offer special advantages regarding application, fabrication, assembly and erection. There is a large variety in sizes and steel grades, which allows an appropriate choice of member dimensions and materials. The fabrication is facilitated by easy sawing and cutting methods and excellent weldability without any restriction for the steels normally used. The assembly can be done by simple bolting through splices and head plates, although direct bolting is difficult. The very favourable strength to weight ratio of hollow sections results in light structures, which makes lifting or hoisting easier. Over and above, they allow streamlined design, e.g. for wind loads, also with RHS with their rounded corners. They enable easier and safer handling and transportation. Due to their smaller surface areas compared to open sections, they reduce the expenses for painting against external corrosion.

The high rate of growth of the application of hollow sections in the field of mechanical engineering demonstrates that from the beginning of the production of steel hollow sections, the designers and constructors have found in them a tool to come to optimum solutions, both technically and economically. Without the use of hollow sections the structures would have been heavier and more expensive. A number of examples of these applications are given, e.g. for traffic and transport, street furniture, aviation and shipbuilding engineering, offshore technology, agriculture and forestry, cranes and other lifting equipment, amusement parks, storage facilities, conveyor systems, machine tools and various other constructions (a number of these examples is shown in this book).

This handbook is devoted to the purpose of showing all the people involved in project and product engineering, including also the design architects, as well as the professors, teachers and students of educational institutions, that it is definitely beneficial to spend time evaluating a project or a product to see if the use of steel hollow sections would bring technical and architectural improvements and, probably more important, save money.

It has been felt that the mechanical engineers must also have sufficient knowledge about the static and fatigue behaviour of steel hollow sections and their connections, which they very often do not learn in universities and technical schools, especially due to the fact that the design and construction with hollow sections involve many considerations going beyond the general structural engineering. In order to compensate for this probable lack of information, a chapter dealing with static and fatigue calculations has been included in this book. However, the first three books of the series "Construction with hollow steel sections" are recommended here to those who are willing to go deeper into this aspect.

A list of the design guides in English, French and German, already published and in preparation, is given below:

1. Design guide for circular hollow section (CHS) joints under predominantly static loading

2. Structural stability of hollow sections

3. Design guide for rectangular hollow section (RHS) joints under predominantly static

loading

4. Design guide for structural hollow section columns exposed to fire

5. Design guide for concrete filled hollow section columns under static and seismic loading

6. Design guide for structural hollow sections for mechanical applications

7. Design guide for fabrication, assembly and erection of hollow section structures (in preparation)

8. Design guide for circular and rectangular hollow section joints under fatigue loading (in preparation)

5

Our grateful thankfulness goes to [Link]. Jaap Wardenier of the Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands, for writing this book. We also thank Dr. Orner Bucak of the Technical University Karlsruhe, Germany, Dipl.-Ing. Dietmar Grotmann of the University of Aix-Ia-Chapelle, Germany, [Link]. Jeff Packer of the University of Toronto, Canada, and Mr. Noel Yeomans of British Steel Tubes & Pipes, United Kingdom, for their valuable contributions and comments.

Further, the support of the CIDECT member firms is gratefully acknowledged.

[Link]

Technical Commission CIDECT

6

Contents

Preface

1

Introduction

9

2 General Application Fields .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 10

2.1 Traffic and Transport .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 10

2.2 Aircraft maintenance equipment 24

2.3 Agriculture and forestry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 26

2.4 Cranes and lifting equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 32

2.5 Amusement park 36

2.6 Storage facilities 40

2.7 Conveyor systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 41

2.8 Offshore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 42

2.9 Contractors' plants. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 45

2.10 Miscellaneous.................................................... 49

3 Fabrication and Assembly 54

3.1 3.2 3.2.1 3.2.2 3.2.3 3.2.4 3.2.5 3.3 3.3.1 3.3.2 3.3.3 3.4 3.4.1 3.4.2 3.4.3 3.4.4 3.4.5 3.5 3.5.1 3.5.2 3.5.3 3.5.4 3.5.5 3.5.6 3.5.7 3.5.8 3.5.9

Fabrication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 54

End preparation of members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 57 Flame cutting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 57

Laser cutting 58

Plasma cutting .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 58 Plane cut by sawing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 58 Simple tubular connections using flattening of the bracing ends. . . . . . . . . . . . .. 64

Bending of structural hollow sections 68

Hot bending of CHS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 69 Cold bending of CHS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 69 Bending of RHS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 71

Welding 71

Welding procedure and sequence. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 72

Welded lattice joints with fillet and fillet/butt welds 75

Butt welded end-to-end joints 76

End-to-end joints using plug-welding. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 77 General welding recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 77

Bolting 79

Bolted knee joints 79

Flange connections 81

Splice joints 81

Joints with fork ends 82

83 83 83 84 84 85 85 86 87 88 88

Screwed tensioner .

Through bolting .

Bolted connections with flattened ends .

Hinged support .

Column bases .

3.5.10 Fish plate connections .

3.5.11 Bolted subassemblies .

3.5.12 Fixing bolts through hand access holes .

3.5.13 Flowdrill with hollow sections .

3.5.14 Blind bolting .

3.5.15 Stud bolting .

7

3.5.16 General recommendations 88

3.6 Assembly. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 88

3.7 Transport and erection of hollow section structures 89

4 Design Considerations for Members. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 91

4.1 Mechanical properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 91

4.1.1 Structural steels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 94 4.1.2 Structural hollow section dimensions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 94

4.1.3 Structural hollow section dimensional tolerances 96

4.1.4 Shapes.......................................................... 96

4.2 Static behaviour of members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 97 4.2.1 Strength, stiffness and deformation capacity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 97

4.2.2 Tension 99

4.2.3 Compression 101

4.2.4 Bending 103

4.2.5 Shear 104

4.2.6 Torsion 104

4.2.7 Internal pressure 105

4.2.8 Combined loadings 105

4.3 Fatigue behaviour of members 105

4.3.1 Influencing factors 106

4.3.2 Loading effects 107

4.3.3 Fatigue strength 108

5 Design Considerations for Connections 112

5.1 Static capacity of welded connections 112

5.1.1 Static capacity of circular hollow section joints 113

5.1.2 Static capacity of rectangular hollow section joints 122

5.2 Static capacity of bolted and nailed connections 128

5.3 Fatigue capacity of welded connections 131

5.3.1 Geometrical stress approach 131

5.3.2 Classification method based on nominal stresses 138

5.4 Fatigue capacity of bolted connections 138

5.4.1 Bolted connections under tensile load 138

5.4.2 Bolted connections under shear load 141

6 Connection Detailing 142

6.1 Welded connections 142

6.2 Bolted connections 146

7 List of symbols 148

8 References .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 51

General information about CIDECT

Objectives, activities, publications, members, etc. . 155

8

1 Introduction

Nowadays, structural hollow sections are used for many applications in architectural, structural and mechanical engineering. Hollow sections have excellent properties, especially for resisting torsion, compression and bending in various directions. Furthermore, the closed shape reduces the protection costs, while the absence of sharp corners results in a better corrosion protection.

The circular hollow section has a particularly pleasing shape and offers a very efficient distribution of steel about the centroidal axes. This section gives a minimum resistance for wind-, water- and wave loading. However, specialized profiling may be required when joining the circular shapes together. As a consequence, rectangular hollow sections have evolved as a practical alternative, allowing easy connections to the flat face. Circular hollow sections are mainly used for applications where the circular shape is preferred, because of appearance, loading (wind, water) or in those cases where fabrication aspects are not dominant. In other cases, where a hollow section is the most appropriate choice, the square or rectangular hollow section will generally be the most economical solution. In particular cases, the largest available section dimension for rectangular hollow sections might also be a reason to select a circular one. These are made up to very large diameters.

Many national and international standards describe the steel grades, sizes and physical properties of the steel hollow sections. See for example [17, 18, 19, 20, 26, 27].

Optimum design of structures made of hollow sections requires an insight into the behaviour of connections. Fabrication, protection and maintenance costs will be minimal and the appearance is better if gussets or stiffening plates are eliminated. Thus the first choice should be the direct connection between members. Since the connection capacity is influenced by the geometrical properties of the members, optimum design can only be obtained if the designer understands the connection behaviour and takes it into account in the conceptual design.

Detailed information about the connection design is given in two previously published CIDECT design guides [49, 63]. In this design guide for mechanical engineering, simple guidance in graphical format is given for a quick design and to show how particular parameters influence the connection capacity.

Although in various countries special codes are available for e.g. cranes, amusement park facilities, etc., in this guide the information is based on the latest developments. The objective is to give insight into various aspects which have to be considered in designing members and connections in hollow sections as used in mechanical engineering and to show various examples of applications.

9

2 General Application Fields

The field of application of hollow sections in mechanical engineering is large. Hollow sections are used for many applications, e.q. trains, trucks, cars, buses, containers, bicycles, cranes, machinery, conveyors, agricultural equipment, storage facilities and amusement parks [5, 6, '1,43].

Especially the weight-strength ratio, the area to be protected and maintained, the easy cleaning and the clean appearance are basic arguments for the use of either circular or rectangular hollow sections. In this chapter, various applications are shown in a pictorial way.

2.1 Traffic and Transport

Fig. 2. i ~ Locomotive engine

10

Fig. 2.2 - Fabrication of the chassis of a train

. Fig. 2.3 - Ski installation, view 1

11

Fig. 2.4 - Ski installation. view 2

Fig. 2.5 - Ski installation, view 3 12

Fig. 2.6 - Ski installation, view 4

13

Fig. 2.7 -.- Side and back view of an automobile transporter

14

Fig. 2.8 - Front view of an automobile transporter

Fig. 2.9 - Chassis of a coach

'15

Fig. 2.10 - Safety cab

Fig. 2.1 i-Bicycle

16

Fig. 2.12 - Cycle-carriers

Fig. 2.13 - Gangway for loading a ship

17

Fig. 2,14·- Oil and liquid gas transfer unit 18

Fig. 2.15 - Pipe bridge

19

Fig. 2.16 - Elevator shaft construction

20

Fig. 2.17 - Road sign portals for motorway. view 1

Fig. 2.18 - Road sign portals for motorway, view 2

21

Fig. 2.19 - Highway safety fence

Fig. 2.20 - Highway bridge parapet 22

Fig. 2.21 - Gantry for overhead electric train power cables

Fig. 2.22 - Overhead power cable support gantries of a railway terminal

23

2.2 Aircraft maintenance equipment

Fig. 2.23 - Construction jigs in aviation industry

Fig. 2.24 - Scaffold in an aircraft workshop

24

Fig. 2.25 - Access platform for loading an aeroplane

Fig. 2.26 - Telescopic access gangway to aeroplane

25

2.3 Agriculture and forestry

Fig .. 2,27 - Full revolving plough machine

Fig. 2.28 -- Detail of plough share connected to wing spar 26

Fig. 2.29 -- Harrowing and crumbling machine for sowing

Fig. 2.30 - Drag cultivator

27

Fig. 2.31 .. - Sugar beet harvester

Fig. 2.32- Detail of a sugar beet harvester

28

Fig. 2.33 -- Disc norrow

Fig. 2.34 - Grab bucket

29

Fig. 2.35 - Crop harvesting machine

Fig. 2.36 - Crop harvester 30

Fig. 2.37 -- All purpose digger

Fig. 2.38 - Wheel barrow

31

2.4 Cranes and lifting equipment

Fig. 2.39 -- Rotary tower crane, view 1

Fig. 2.4 i-Transport of a rotary tower crane

32

Fig. 2.40 - Rotary tower crane, view 2

Fig. 2.42- Mobiie crane

Fig. 2.43 - Portal crane for steel stock yard

33

Fig. 2.44-

Dock side cranes

Fig. 2.45 - Container lifter

34

Fig. 2.46 - Portal crane in a boats' dock

Fig. 2.47 - Scissor platform lift

35

2.5 Amusement park

Fig. 2.48 - Giant wheel

36

Fig. 2.49 - Holler coaster

37

Fig. 2.50 - Giant swing boat 38

Fig. 2.51 - Large water slide support structure

39

2.6 Storage facilities

40

Fig. 2.52 - Warehouse construction with high level racking system

Fig. 2.53 - Detail of a high level racking system

2.7 Conveyor systems

Fig. 2.54 - Automatic conveyor installations

(Photo: Mannesmann Demag Fordsrtschnlk, Wetter/Germany)

Fig. 2.55 - Electric suspension conveyor installation for automobile chassis

(Photo: AFT Automatlsierunqs- und Fordertechnik GmbH, SchOpfheiml Germany)

41

2.8 Offshore

42

Fig. 2.56 - Semi-submersible with helicopter deck

Fig. 2.57 - Lower part of a fixed offshore platform

Fig. 2.58 - Offshore berthing terminal

Fig. 2.59 - Offshore berthing installation for ships

43

44

Fig. 2.60a-

living quarter module of an offshore platform during lifting by a mobile crane

Fig.2.60bSubstructure of an offshore platform

2.9 Contractors' plants

Fig. 2J51 - Tilting drum concrete mixer

Fig. 2.62 - Mobile telescopic excavator

45

Fig. 2.63 - Access platform for civil engineering purposes

46

Fig. 2.64 - Frame construction for a silo

47

Fig. 2.65 - Dredger during pipe laying

48

2:10 Miscellaneous

Fig. 2.66 - Dump trailer

Fig. 2.67 - Snow plough

49

Fig. 2.68- Container for a pressure vessel

Fig. 2.69 - Lighting gantry in a television studio

50

Fig. 2.70 - Radioteiescope

Fig. 2.71 - Telescope masts

51

Fig, 2,72 - Frame of a welding robot

Fig, 2.73 -- Service stand 0'1 a machine tool

52

Fig. 2.74 - Pipe line bridge on a liquid gas tanker

53

3 Fabrication and Assembly

Nature shows us how structures have to be designed. Fig. 3.1 demonstrates a typical example. It can be gathered from this example that a continuously smooth transition in the joints should be strived at, like it is the case for cast joints. For welded joints of hollow sections, it is, as Fig. 3.2 shows, difficult to fulfil this criterion.

Fig. 3.1 - Nature shows us how we should construct

3.1 Fabrication

As with all other steel structures, the total cost for hollow section structures is also influenced positively or negatively, particularly by the production costs. Due to this fact, the workshop jobs, e.g.

- cutting or sawing

54

- edge preparation for welds

- welding or bolting or combination of both

- assembly of the members or constructional parts

have to be carefully planned and conducted.

A further method to save costs is to order hollow sections in extra long lengths for particular structures, thus reducing the number of butt welds or flanged, bolted connections (e. g. for lattice girder chords).

Fig. 3.2 - Welded hollow section joints

X-Joint

{j = b,/bo 7 = t, Ito 2-y = bo/to g' = g/to

Jointing two or more CHS members directly to one another is more complicated and expensive than jointing RHS members, as the intersection between CHS members requires a multiplanar curve, whereas that for RHS needs only a plane cut. The bevelling for the weld edge preparation of the CHS ends in a joint is also more complex than that for RHS. Therefore, RHS constructions are very often preferred to CHS structures, when the fabrication cost has the first priority for the selection of the profiles. A possibility to bypass this situation is to use the modern automatic flame-cutting machines, which reduces the fabrication costs depending on the volume of the job. This will be described more elaborately in the following chapter. There are, however, other reasons, such as lower wind resistance or multiaxial bending, or aesthetics in the eyes of an architect, which lead to the application of CHS.

For small CHS dimensions, alternatives such as full (which is a special case) or partly flattening of the ends, should also be taken into consideration in order to avoid expensive manufacturing by profile shaping and weld edge preparation.

For offshore structures, the procedure to fabricate the nodes fully in the workshop, to carry out the required heat treatments and non-destructive tests there and to weld them together by butt welds on site in a complete structure, has turned out to be economical (Fig. 3.3). The butt welds on site are, if necessary, subsequently heat treated by induction heating.

55

Fig. 3.3 .... Parts of an offshore ptattorrn

56

3.2 End preparation of members

The joining of the members in a construction starts with the end preparation of members. In the case of structural hollow sections, this involves square cutting, mitre cutting, profile shaping and cropping. The methods that are most frequently applied are flame cutting and sawing, while in light fabrications often a simultaneous cutting and crimping are carried out in one operation by means of a punch in a press.

3.2.1 Flame cutting

In general, circular hollow sections are usually cut by this method, which can be performed manually as well as by means of machines. Hand flame cutting is mainly used for site cutting and for cutting of larger sized sections. Modern coordinate steered flame cutting machines are available, which cut and profile shape the ends of a circular hollow section to any combination of diameters and angles within their ranges.

[Link] Flame cutting and preparation of CHS

The following job sequences are necessary for manual flame cutting: - Determination of an intersection curve

- Making a template

- Marking a tube

- Flame cutting by hand

- Correcting the weld edges

- Correcting the connection curves for the internal and external diameters

- Final correction by means of a grinding machine

The automatic flame cutting machine of the firm Muller, Opladen, Germany, introduced in the fifties, is controlled by a lever arrangement. The adjustment of the levers is easy to make without calculations, since the values for the tube diameters, the bevel and mitre angles and the eccentricity can be directly put into the machine. This machine can cut the bevel, mitre and intersection curves of a tube automatically with its steered flame-cutter. The machine is equipped with motor drive and a template set-up system, which enable the machine to cut other intersection forms, which cannot be made using the lever system. All intersectional curves can be cut with the required welding chamfer, which can reduce the preparation costs significantly.

The cutting facilities differ principally between tubular constructions and pipelines. The fabrication by penetration of one tube into another is done for the pipelines, while their matching with one another is required for tubular structures. Fig. 3.4 demonstrates them schematically.

Main tube

Mating tube

Main pipe

Penetrating pi pe

Mating tube

set on the main tube

Penetrating pipe placed into the main pipe

Fig. 3.4 - Cutting facilities by the mechanical tube flame cutting and grinding machine of the firm MOiler, Opladen

57

The internal diameter of the mating tube (d1 in) has to be adapted to the external diameter of the main tube (do) in tubular construction: while for piping the external diameter of the penetrating pipe (d1) has to correspond to the internal diameter of the main pipe (Do in)' Nowadays, various computer controlled flame cutting machines are available on the market. Operating these machines is very simple and can be carried out by normally trained people. The cutting precision and the repeatability is very good compared to either the lever type machines or manual flame cutting. This also renders advantages for welding.

The following cutting facilities are possible for these modern machines:

- Single or double mitre

- Concentric or eccentric adjustment

- Concentric and eccentric penetration

- Automatic weld preparation

- Other special adjustments

The following example demonstrates the economy of the application of the computer controlled flame cutting in comparison with the manual flame cutting:

A tube 0850 x 40 mm requires 40 minutes to be cut for a particular tubular connection by the computer controlled machine including the programming time, while the same job with a worse cutting quality requires approx. 12 hours by manual flame-cutting.

3.2.2 Laser cutting

With the development of the new laser equipment with increasing efficiency, laser cutting is becoming more and more important. The control is nearly identical to that of the computer controlled flame cutting machine, but laser beams are used as the cutting medium. Today, the cutting of tubes with a wall thickness of 16 mm can be handled without any problem.

The advantages of laser cutting are:

- the heat affected zone (HAZ) is very small

- very high cutting rate, up to 10 [Link].

- very small cutting tolerances

However, the disadvantage at the present time is the high investment cost.

3.2.3 Plasma cutting

In plasma cutting, the material is melted by a concentrated electric arc. Due to the high concentration of energy, the cutting is quicker than with other existing methods and in most cases the cuts are made without any distortion.

Small transportable compact machines, as well as high capacity installations, are now available. The current ranges from 40 to 120 Amp. and the Voltage is between 80 and 125. The cutting capacity is up to 35 mm thick material for quality cuts, but can go up to 45 mm with reduced quality.

3.2.4 Plane cut by sawing

Sawing is usually carried out using a heavy duty circular saw with a hydraulic feed or a heavy duty band saw. The following equipment can also be used depending on the required quality and accuracy of a cut:

- Grinding wheel

Rapid process, lacking precision, with sharp burrs left - Toothed steel disc

Rapid process, but inaccurate, with fused metal resulting in substantial burrs - Milling machine

Relatively low speed giving a high level of precision and no burrs. Working rate is satisfactory .

The following types of the sawing plants are now available in the market. These show a considerable development in cutting machinery and an optimisation of flow:

58

1. Manually fed cutting equipment

2. Semi-automatic cutting installation

3. Automatic cutting installation

4. Workpiece feeding installation

Automatic computer or lever controlled flame cutting machines are used to cut muttiplanar intersection curves for connecting circular hollow sections to one another. However, the investment costs for this purpose are high, which prevent many small and medium sized firms from purchasing them. The multiplanar intersection curves can, however, be substituted by a number of plane cuts using the sawing procedure, depending on the relative diameters of the tubes used in the joints. A necessary condition is that a joint manufactured by this process must have about the same load bearing capacity as a profile cut joint using automatic flame cutting machines. At the same time it is important to know about the gap between the ends of the bracings and the chord, so that these can be bridged by welding.

Fig. 3.5 - Node manufactured by a plane cut sawing before welding (plate to be inserted between bracings)

The size of gap depends on the following factors:

1. Number of plane cuts

2. Diameter ratio dildo

3. Wall thickness of the bracing member

4. Angle of inclination of the bracing to the chord

The simplest procedure is the one with a single plane cut. This can only be applied to joints with very small dildo ratios.

When a CHS bracing member is joined to a CHS chord with a substantially larger diameter (Fig. 3.6), the former can only be cut flat at the end, provided that

91 S t,

with t, being the smaller of the two values to and 11,

59

A further condition, which is of a more general nature, is: g2:<;;3 mm

Fig. 3.6 - CHS joint with a single plane cut at the bracing end

Chord

2ro

h

Max. weld gap Jm Jj-21 (d402 + r,2+ do Vd02 _ r,2) _ do

2 4 2

° h sin 9

a, 9 - 90 + arc tan ( )

r, - h cos 9

h sin 9

a290o-9+arctan( )

r, + h cos 9

_ Ydo2- 4 r,2 d,

XI - 2sinB +Ttana,

Xc = X I - d, tan a, _ xl+xc

X, - -2--

d,

x2 = 2'(tana, +tan(2)

Fig. 3.7a - CHSnode with two plane cuts

60

Chord

~ = arccos[~~(V~~, +13J~~,-1 ~

h'=}__..jdo2-4r,2sin20 h = dO_h,

2 2

Y = (~-r, cos~) (tan !x, +tan !X3)

y,

,/d 2 d

Max. weld gap Jm = V-t + r,2 cos2 ~ - ~

h sin e

!x, = e - 900 + arc tan ( he' e)

r, - cos - Z Sin

r, cos 0

Z =---

sin e

Y2

h sin e

!X 2 = 900 - 9 + arc tan ( h 9 . 9)

r, + cos - Z Sin

= XI + Xc

x, 2

XI=Y+Y' xc=xl-d,tana,

h'

x2 =Y+Y2-xc x3 = sine-x,

Fig. 3.7b - CHS node with three plane cuts

61

Table 3.1 shows recommended limiting combinations of bracings and chords for the joint given in Fig. 3.6 under the condition 92::; 3 rnm

Table 3.1

-~--
I do d1 do d1
mm rnm mm mm
_-
33.7 26.9 88.9 33.7
42.4 26,9 101.6 42.4
--~ ..
48.3 26,9 114.3 42.4
~,~.
60.3 33,7 139.7 48.3
76.1 J 33.7 i 168.3 48,3 I
I Large d1/do ratios lead to large gaps for the weld, however, without any negative influence on the load bearing capacity of the joint. The real disadvantage for large gap lies in the high costs for welding both members together.

Figures 3,7a and 3.7b [56] show the configuration and geometry of the CHS nodes with two and three plane cuts. The calculation formulae are given under the figures.

Fig. 3,8 - CHS bracing ends with single, double and triple plane cuts

62

Fig. 3.9 - Weided connection with flattened CHS bracing ends

Fig. 3.10 - Bolted connection with flattened CHS bracing ends (in order to increase the bearing capacity of the cross section weakened by the bolt hole, the flattened bracing ends are reinforced by plates)

63

3.2.5 Simple tubular connections using flattening of the bracing ends

In order to avoid complex cutting of the intersection curves and the necessary welding bevels, joints have been made of tubes with flattened ends in many cases. In a structure, they are joined by either bolting or welding. For some constructions, partial flattening or crimping has also proved to be suitable.

Flattened tube ends offer special advantages for bolted connections with flange plates (Fig. 3.13). The bolts are placed between the adjacent tubes, which allows lower head plate thicknesses. This connection type is particularly suitable for temporary constructions.

Further fields of the application for flattened tube ends are lateral wind bracing, scaffolding, masts, rotary tower cranes, crane bridges, small size lattice girders, etc.

The flattening can be carried out with the material in either a hot or a cold condition.

For hot flattening, only the area intended for flattening is to be heated up to a temperature of about 750°C. Heating can be done by electricity, oxyacetylene torch or butane or propane burners.

The cold flattening procedure is quick and simple. This is performed either by a flattening device with two V-shaped cutter plates, which can simultaneously flatten and cut a tube, or by a press, which flattens already sawn ends.

The type of the die determines the shape of the flattening; if the die is simple, the length L will be between 1.2 d and 1.5 d as shown in Fig. 3.15. The edges of the dies should be rounded off to avoid crushing of the metal causing transverse cracks.

The cold deformation grade can negatively influence the weldability of the material. The statements regarding the welding in the cold formed zones given in some codes e. g. Eurocode 3, are without restriction not applicable to the present problem. This has been confirmed by the available test results. In order to prove sufficient weldability of particular materials for tubes, also in the cold flattened condition, simple test specimens can be developed. Fig. 3.17 may serve as a recommendation.

Some cold-formed tubes may experience cracking of the tube along the weld seam during flattening. If this occurs, the crack must be repaired by welding. Weld seam cracking, if initially encountered, can generally be avoided by offsetting the weld seam from the line of extreme deformation.

End-flattening for rectangular hollow sections (RHS) is not a common procedure.

The material is plastically deformed during the cold-flattening process and deformations take place in both longitudinal and transverse directions, which may produce cracks. The initiation of these cracks is influenced by:

- plastic deformation capacity of the tube material, which is especially influenced by the

chemical compositions

- diameter to wall thickness ratio (d/t)

- angle of inclination of the transition zone

- shape of the transition zone

- length of the completely flattened zone

64

Fig. 3.11 - Two variants lor connections with flattened bracing ends in crane runway girder

65

t--~--

~~.

Fig. 3.12 - Example for the design of a joint with partially flattened or crimped tube ends

Fig. 3.13 ._ Head or flange butt joint with flattened tube ends. The arrangement of the tubes permits stiffening plates for thin head plates

Fig. 3.14 -- Flattening in the hot condition

66

Fig. 3.15 - Cold flattening of a tube end

a)

Fig. 3.16 - Standard forms for flattened ends

Specimen®

2

1.2d<L< 1.5d

b)

c)

t

Tube in initial condition

Tube full flattened and then welded

Direction CD variable deformation grade Direction ® variable heating temperature

Specimen®

Fig. 3.17 - Specimens to check the flattening capacity of a cold-formed tube

67

The multiple axes of the deformation can result in the occurrence of cracks and make it difficult to predict the deformation behaviour based on material data, e.g. notch impact strength, failure elongation, etc.

Knowledge obtained from the existing experimental investigations indicates that the qualification of a tube for flattening can be simply checked by special tests on transversally folded specimens. These problems can be by-passed by hot forming, although possibly a loss of the strength of the material has to be taken into account in this case, if cold-formed sections are used.

For the design of these connections, see references [44, 56].

3.3 Bending of structural hollow sections

Tubes can be bent in either hot or cold condition. During this process, folds may occur in the inner compression zone and a decrease of the thickness takes place in the elongated external zone. in order to avoid the formation of folds and ovalizatlon, the fo!!owing conditions are favourable:

Fig. 3.18 - Induction bending machine

68

a) Low yield strength of the material

b) High ultimate strength of the material

c) Sufficient elongation at failure in tension (at least 20%).

Further determining parameters are the ratio of the wall thickness to the diameter of CHS (or the height of RHS) and the ratio of the radius of curvature to the CHS diameter or RHS height [31].

3.3.1 Hot bending of CHS

"Hamburger Rohrbogenwerk" was the inventor and holder of the patent for the classical hot forming procedure for manufacturing foldfree bends in welded and seamless tubes by filling them up with sand. Even if the bending radius is very small, the wall thickness on the outer side does not diminish with this process, which consists of heating a tube to a temperature between 850 and 11 OOoC and then pushing it on a conical internal mandrel, which produces with simultaneous enlargement of the diameter the required bending radius of curvature. Another more modern bending method uses inductive heating and a typical machine is shown in Fig. 3.18.

This machine operates on the principle of inductive heating on a short length of material under precise temperature control. It is equipped with two bending arms, which permit a much greater range of variables with regard to diameter and wall thickness, bending radius and angle to be accommodated. These machines permit the manufacture of very small radius bends, even in large pipe diameters and wall thicknesses.

3.3.2 Cold bending of CHS

The following five processes are mainly in use today:

1) Cold bending by pressing:

This process consists of setting a hollow section between two fixed rollers and bending them by the displacement of a central former, usually connected to a hydraulic actuator (Fig. 3.19).

.......-" Moving part - white

// .-..:-...::.., " Fixed part - black

/ Lc:r~ -,

/ / -, -,

'/// -, ~~

Fig. 3.19 - Cold bending by pressing

Fig. 3.20 - Cold bending using a winding system

69

2) Cold bending using a winding system:

The hollow section is held by a shoe or clamp, firmly connected to a circular former "b". A corresponding fixed gliding shoe "c" is then rotated and forces the tube into the recess of the circular former "b" (Fig. 3.20).

3) Cold bending by means of a "forming box"

Instead of winding the hollow section around a forming tool, as in 2), this process forces it into a pre-shaped forming box. This method is only economic if many bends using the same size of hollow section are required.

Fig. 3.21 - Cold bending using a "forming box".

4) Roller bender

Bending is obtained by passing the hollow sections through three rollers. All three may be driven, but the central one, which determines the radius, can be idle. This process is generally the one preferred by the steel constructors (Fig. 3.22).

+

Fig. 3.22 - Cold roller bending

5) Bending by means of mitre cuts or "V" notches

An approximate curve is obtained by joining straight sections end to end by welding, the ends having been previously cut with an appropriate angle (Fig. 3.23).

Fig. 3.23 - Mitre cutting and welding

70

3.3.3 Bending of RHS

Three methods commonly used for bending of square or rectangular hollow sections are:

1. Cold bending, using a three-roller machine (Fig. 3.22)

2. Hot bending, using induction heating with a radial arm controlling the radius (Fig. 3.18).

3. Mitre cutting and welding (Fig. 3.23)

The choice of method is basically governed by section size and the radius required, but there is a large overlap where any method could be used.

In general, when bending a flat faced hollow member, the inside face will compress, the outside wall will stretch and the side wall will exhibit both behaviours. If attempting a too severe bend on a section with a high width to wall thickness ratio, convexity in the two side walls and concavity in the inner face may develop (Fig. 3.24). There will be some reduction in height over the curved region, again dependent on the severity of the bend. Wall thinning and section reduction are therefore to be checked against the requirements of the project specification [31].

Before bending

t

--

After bending

b'

.. A" , , , , , , "1-,..-

h

h' h

Fig. 3.24 - Typical RHS sections before and after cold bending

3.4 Welding

Structural hollow sections are mostly supplied to national and international specifications, which meet the welding requirements. However, the weldability is dependent both on the chemical composition of the steel and on the welding method. The chemical composition is one of the parameters, which influence the susceptibility to cold cracking in the heat affected zone and is often measured by the Carbon Equivalent Value CEV as shown below:

CEV = C Mn Cr+Mo+V Ni+Cu

+ 6 + 5 + 15

For wall thicknesses lower than 16 mm, it is generally agreed that no cracking can occur if CEV < DAD. Some precautions depending on the welding procedure have to be taken for DAD < CEV < 0045. For CEV greater than 0045, preheating is generally needed.

Many welding methods exist, e. g. manual, semi-automatic, machine weld or automatic, etc. The first two are normally used in the case of hollow sections. Manual Metal Arc (MMA) welding is commonly used for site welding and when restricted access prevails. The semiautomatic Metal Inert Gas (MIG) welding using a continuous wire feed with an inert gas shield and involving manual manipulation by the welder during welding is popular for shop fabrication. For some specific applications with large quantities of similar pieces, friction welding can also be a good alternative, especially for end or flange connections in CHS.

The selection of electrodes depends on the service environments. Parameters include steel grades, temperature and humidity, joint configuration as well as geometrical details and

71

welding position. When two different steel grades have to be welded together, the welding procedure for the higher steel grade should always be adopted. Further, it is advisable to obtain information from the manufacturers of the electrodes about their performances for particular applications.

Fig. 3.25 illustrates the semi-automatic (MIG) welding with a wire electrode (wire sizes 0.8, 1.0 and 1.2 mm) and a shielding gas (C02, argon/C02 and argon/oxygen mixture) depending on the wire.

Fig. 3.25 - Semi-automatic (MIG) welding procedure

This is a fast welding process, which can reduce the fabrication costs. But the welding access can be substantially restricted by the space needed for the gas shield nozzle, even though various shapes of nozzle are available.

3.4.1 Welding procedure and sequence

For uniplanar and particularly for multiplanar joints in hollow sections, the appropriate welding sequence has to be maintained and welds must not start or stop on a corner (of RHS). Further, it is preferable to avoid multipass welds, wherever possible. This may need to be taken into account when a subsequent member has to be welded to a joint (node). Depending on the position and movability of the constructional elements, the following four welding positions for structural hollow section joints are shown together with the welding sequence.

1) 3600 rolling weld

A downhead (flat) weld is made, while the section is rotated through 3600 in an anticlockwise direction (Fig. 3.26).

Electrode

I

Fig. 3.26 - 3600 rolling weld

72

2) 180° vertical-up weld

For a lattice girder construction, all the welds are typically made on the top side and the panel then turned over (through 180°), to complete the operation (Fig. 3.27).

Fig. 3.27 - 1800 vertical-up weld

I
- ~+- r-
. .;1
T - Panel turned 1800

3) Vertical-up weld

This position, although rare, is only valid when the hollow sections cannot be moved (Fig. 3.28).

Fig. 3.28 - Vertical-up weld

4) Horizontal weld

This position is necessary when the members are in an upright position and cannot be moved (Fig. 3.29). If the members are in a horizontal position, the welds are made in a vertical position.

73

Fig. 3.29 - Horizontal weld

I. bo .1

This edge prepared Square to branch

Xl)"SSS~~

9 < 600 3mm max.

X2)

~"'~

l 3mm max.

9> 60°

1:>....J.....::~~..>...Jt

3mm max.

H min. = t1

3mm max.

H min. = t1

74

Fig. 3.30 - Fillet and butt welds in lattice joints between rectangular hollow sections

3.4.2 Welded lattice joints with fillet and fillet-butt welds

Nodal [oints between hollow sections are made using fillet or a combination of fillet and butt (groove) welding depending on the wall thickness of the members and the configuration of the joint.

The figures 3.30 and 3.31 show the basic conditions of applying fillet and butt welds in nodal joints between hollow sections [25].

This edge prepared Square to branch

Xl~-+

8 < 60°

3mm max.

ISS¥S3~L,

8> 60°

"" t,

X3) 7 /»;

HL_ '''0 2.5mm

~-_j

11> $ $ S S s S s:::s:sss t

3mm max.

3mm max.

Z2) )t, 1 to 2.5 mm \A1f!J>~'

L~-H

t 'SSSSSS$S$$$sq t 3mm max.

Fig. 3.31 - Fillet and butt welds in lattice joints between circular hollow sections

Depending on the angle of intersection of the bracing and chord axes and the wall thickness of the bracing member, fillet or butt welds are applied at the crown (point X in Figs. 3.30 and 3.31):

e:o; 60°, all thickness: butt weld (Detail X,)

e> 60°, t1 < 8 mm: fillet weld (Detail X2)

t1 ~ 8 mm: butt weld (Detail X3)

75

For the saddle (point V), fillet or butt welds are used depending on the following conditions: t1 < 8 mm, d1/do or b1/bo ~ 0.85: fillet weld (Detail Y1)

t1 < 8 mm, d1/do or b1/bo = 1.0: butt weld (Detail Y 2)

t1 ;::: 8 mm: butt weld (Detail Y 3)

At the heel of the bracing member, the wall thickness of the bracing governs the application of fillet or butt welds. e ;::: 30° is recommended to assure appropriate penetration of the weld.

t1 < 8 mm: fillet weld (Detail Z1)

t1 ;::: 8 mm: butt weld (Detail Z2)

In the case of a weld at the intersection of bracing and chord with a combination of fillet and butt welds, the transition from fillet to butt weld must be continuous and smooth. For a joint with only butt welded intersection, the angle of intersection between the members changes from point to point around perimeter of the bracing.

Note that the strength of fillet weld is governed by the acutal weld throat thickness "a" and not by the dimension "L" (see chapter 5).

3.4.3 Butt welded end-to-end joints

End-to-end or splice joints with butt welds are capable of developing the full strength of the weaker member, when full weld penetration is achieved and the correct electrode for the type of steel is applied.

Tables 3.2 and 3.3 illustrate the weld preparations for this kind of joint both with and without backing members. They are recommended in various specifications, where the details may differ slightly from one another. Fig. 3.32 illustrates the end preparation of the members, when the wall thicknesses of the members differ from each other.

Table 3.2 - End-to-end joints without backing member

Wall thickness Application Weld Weld preparation a b c
mm type degr.
up to 3 one sided I-type ~~~ - t -
-JL t
b
3 to 20 one sided V-type II< ",60 o to 3 mm -
~~
_IL t
b
up to 20 one sided V-type II< ",60 o to 4 mm 1.5 to
~_j 4mm
~~t
-JLct
b
3 to 20 one sided ~ 45 to 60 o to 3 mm -
6 to 20 both sided groove ~~_j
weld _J~ -,1 76

Table 3.3 - End-to-end joints with backing member

~
[_. - -1·_· -. -}

0- ~

Weld preparation Wall thick- v s Backing plate
for butt weld ness to, mm thickness
min max min max min max
mm mm mm mm mm mm
v 3 3 5 - - 3 3
11- j 5 5 6 - - 3 5
~~J: to 6 6 8 3 6
l.I..l..1illJ=--, - -
t, +
>600
~ j
sL~l to < 20 5 8 1 2.5 3 6
r -II.- t,ll
v
>300
\i .t
sL~_1. to 20:0; to< 30 8 10 2 3 3 10
r _J I..- 111'
v 3.4.4 End-to-end joints using plug-welding (Fig. 3.33)

This joint consists of a length of bar fitted inside the hollow section and plug-welded in position. The free end of the bar may be left intact for plug-welding or a hole may be drilled for site bolting. This joint is a light mechanical joint, suitable for hand railing or guard railing.

3.4.5 General welding recommendations

1. Over size welding should be avoided as far as possible. Welds should be the minimum size with regard to the load to be carried and the condition of working. This will also contribute to minimize distortion.

2. The angle of intersection between a bracing member and a chord in a lattice joint should be 30° or more to assure weld penetration at the heel.

3. The recommended welding sequences shown in Figs 3.27 and 3.28 should be maintained to reduce distortion. This will also avoid starts and stops in the corners for RHS. The latter is particularly important for fatigue critical joints because weld flaws in the corners initiate premature fatigue cracking.

77

4. General structural steels used in tubular constructions do not require any preheating before welding. However, when the surfaces to be welded are wet or when the ambient temperature is 5° or less, preheating must be applied until the sections are warm to the touch for a distance of not less than 75 mm on either side of the joint.

5. There is no difficulty in welding galvanised or zinc-coated hollow sections, but proper ventilation is necessary to remove fumes when zinc volatilises. For welding galvanised and metal coated hollow sections, the correct method is to volatilise the coating with a lengthened arc and then perform welding. After welding, zinc coating can be renewed by spray metallization or zinc rich painting.

tlC~~=:Jt2

~mU

Thickness difference

Thickness difference > 1.5mm but «; 3mm

up to 1.5mm

Permissible when

t2-t, .,;;:; 0.5· t2";;:; 3mm

Permissible without restriction Angle of inclination (X max. 30°, Preferably smaller

~~

Slope not to Thickness

extend 1 in 4 difference

over 3mm

Fig. 3.32 - Weld preparation for end-to-end hollow section members with different wall thicknesses

Plug-weld

Dowel:

Drilled for bolting Plain for plug weld

Fig. 3.33 - End-to-end joint with a welded solid bar

Mating end drilled

Another type of plug-welded joint uses a sleeve, which incorporates two shaped steel strips (Fig. 3.34).

Fig. 3.34 - End-to-end RHS joint with welded strips

78

3.5 Bolting

Connecting two hollow section members or a hollow section and an open profile or a plate directly to each other by bolting can be difficult unless the joint is located close to the open end of a hollow section member or by taking special measures, such as cutting a hand access hole in the structural hollow section member to enable the bolt to be tightened from the inside or using "through" or "blind" bolts. The reason for this special situation is evident, as the hollow section allows free access only to the outside; any access to the inside is very restricted.

Bolted connections remain nonetheless desirable in many cases in spite of the unique condition of non-accessibility to the inside of a hollow section. However, in these cases, the hollow sections can be joined indirectly using flange or capping plates welded to them and the plates bolted together. For site joints between prefabricated welded sub-assemblies, the methods described above can be used, which makes it possible to effect such bolted connections in a simple and economical manner. The main methods of assembly by bolting are described below.

Bolted connections are mostly detachable. They are preferably selected for the on site assembly in order to avoid site welding, which may cause welding errors due to ambient adversities. Site welding is also far more costly than site bolting.

3.5.1 Bolted knee joints

Fig. 3.35 - Flange connection at an angular intersection

This is a simple and economical arrangement with head or flange plates welded to the inclined cut ends of the members. The head plates are joined by bolting. The joint offers good strength and rigidity depending on the bolt arrangements.

Fig. 3.36a is a straightforward bolted arrangement with a single plate welded to the end of the cross member, and the other one welded to the side of the leg. This is a suitable shear connection. Fig. 3 .. 36b is applicable to joints heavily loaded. in bending, where a reinforcement haunch is welded under the cross member to deepen and strengthen the connection region.

79

a)

b)

Fig. 3.36 - Knee joint with flange bolted on the sides of the leg

Fig. 3.37 - Bolted "haunched" joint

x)

y)

r,

II

Ii

Fig. 3.38 - Flange joints

80

z)

t,

C D

@Hlt

The angled connection (Fig. 3.37) is fabricated by shop welding the knee region (A) together and then joining the members on site by bolted flange plate joints. The connection is suitable for rigid portal frame construction and the bolted flange connection (8) can be located at the point of contraflexure (inflection point) at the theoretical distance L up from the position A.

3.5.2 Flange connections

Flange connections can be made with ring (x) or solid (y) flange plates. Various shapes (z) can be adopted, whether the hollow section is circular or rectangular. The choice depends on the load to be transmitted as well as the appearance and fabrication costs.

Ring flanges are simply cut from a plate or strip without any particular accurate machining. They are generally selected when the parts are galvanised after fabrication and also for fluid or concrete filled tubes.

Solid flanges (y) are used when the inside volume of a hollow section has to be protected. Weld preparation for the hollow section ends is required only when the wall thickness of the hollow section is larger than 8 mm.

Ring flanges typically require very thick steel ring plates, as the plates are generally designed to remain elastic, whereas solid flange plates can be designed for plastic behaviour in structural applications and will hence generally be much thinner.

Attention must be paid to water drainage in external structures. The design calculation of hollow section flange joints has been dealt with in another CIDECT publication [63].

3.5.3 Splice joints

In-line joints with bolted splice plates (Fig. 3.39) can be used as an alternative to flange joints. They can be either left exposed or used in connection with cover plates to give a smooth external appearance.

Fig. 3.39 - Splice joint

An alternative method is to use internal plates as shown in Fig. 3.40.

Fig. 3.40 - Splice joint with internal plates

81

[Link] Friction joint

Fig. 3.41 shows a joint with bolted inner sleeves. This is a type of dowel joint where the secured friction is applied by means of two "Allen screws". The screws are tightened or loosened through access holes or slots cut in the underside of the hollow section. The holes or slots can be sealed with a suitable sealing compound.

r----

I

I

I

I I

L _

Fig. 3.41 - Friction joint

3.5.4 Joints with fork ends

The fork ends are fabricated either by steel forgings or by machining solid bars for smaller dimensions (see Fig. 3.42) or by fabricating double-tongued forks from plates for larger sizes (Fig. 3.43). They are then welded to the hollow section ends.

Fig. 3.42 - Joint with fork ends for smaller dimensions

Fig. 3.43 - Joint with double-tongued forks for larger dimensions

Single-tongue T-stubs may be cut from Tee sections (Fig. 3.44) or fabricated from plate (especially where off-centre bolting is required.) (Fig. 3.45).

Fig. 3.44 - Single-tongue T-stub from Tee section

82

Fig. 3.45 - Single-tongue T-stub fabricated from plate

3.5.5 Screwed tensioner

In this joint a screwed bar is welded to the end of a circular hollow section (Fig. 3.46). For smaller diameter CHS, a bolt may be welded to one end of the section and a nut to the other (Fig. 3.47). This type of joint is not used for structural purposes. They have been applied for hand-railing, guard-railing, cattle pens and other minor applications.

Fig. 3.46 - Screwed bar welded to the CHS end

Fig. 3.47 - A bolt and a nut welded to the CHS ends

3.5.6 Through-bolting

Joints with inner sleeves can also be made by means of through-bolting as shown in Fig. 3.48.

Fig. 3.48 - Joint by through-bolting

Through-bolting is performed by drilling the section and welding a spacer tube in position to permit bolting through the section (Fig. 3.49).

If internal corrosion needs to be avoided, the end of the hollow section can be sealed using a welded-on end plate.

3.5.7 Bolted connections with flattened ends

Circular hollow sections with flattened ends are well suited to lightly loaded applications (Fig. 3.50). The permissible load has to be related either to the strength of the bolts or to the strength of the reduced cross sectional area of the flattened ends.

83

Fig. 3.49 - Drilling a section and welding a spacer tube to it

b)

a)

Fig. 3.50 - Bolting hollow sections with flattened ends

3.5.8 Hinged support

An example of an effective hinge or pin in a particular plane is shown in Fig. 3.51, where the device imparts rotational freedom in that plane.

a)

Fig. 3.51 - Hinged or pin support

3.5.9 Column bases

This is a very simple connection, where the hollow section column is welded to the base plate, which in turn is bolted to the foundation (Fig. 3.52a). For resisting high moments, the column bases can be reinforced with welded brackets (Fig. 3.52b). The support can also be made adjustable (Fig. 3.52c).

84

~ ~

Fig. 3.52 - Column bases

3.5.10 Fish plate connections

Fig. 3.53 demonstrates this type of joint with four, six or eight strips welded longitudinally on the periphery of the hollow section and connected by sets of double lap plates, one on each side. Heavy loads can be transmitted by this joint.

Fig. 3.53 - Fish plate connection

3.5.11 Bolted subassemblies

Lattice structures are often connected to columns by bolted flanges, plates or Tee profiles. Examples are shown in Fig. 3.54.

~ ~

a)

b)

Fig. 3.54 - a) Connection at lower chord

b) Connection at upper and lower chords

85

3.5.12 Fixing bolts through hand access holes

As has been already mentioned, hollow sections are closed sections, the inside of which are not accessible without special measures. In many cases, this accessibility is required in order to fix the bolts of a joint inside the members. Fig. 3.55 presents an application, where hand access holes are cut in the members to reach the bolts inside. This type of joint is often applied to spherical node connections in a space structure (Fig. 3.56).

Fig. 3.55 - Hidden, bolted butt-joint with headplates in the compression chord of a lattice girder

Fig. 3.56 - Krupp Mental join! system

86

3.5.13 Flowdrill with hollow section

The flowdrill system is a special patented method for extruded holes [8]. This has recently been developed further and CIDECT has undertaken extensive tests to prove the load bearing capacity of this type of joint using this method in structural hollow sections [10], see Fig. 3.57.

Fig. 3.57 - Flow drill connection for joining double angle web cleats or flexible end plates to RHS

Flowdrilling is a thermal drilling process (Fig. 3.58) to make a hole through the wall of a hollow section by bringing a tungsten carbide bit into contact with the hollow section wall and generating sufficient heat by friction to soften the steel. As the bit moves through the wall, the metal flows to form an internal bush. In the subsequent step, the bush is threaded using a roll tap.

Fig. 3.58 - Flowdrill process

1 st stage

2nd stage

At the present stage of investigation, the bolting of hollow sections with wall thicknesses up to 12.5 mm can be recommended by using the flowdrill method.

Fig. 3.59 - Lindapter "HolioFast"

87

3.5.14 Blind bolting

These special types of bolts and systems allow to bolt from one side of a hollow section. There are a number of patented blind bolting systems available. One of them, Lindapter "HolioFast" and "HolioBolt", which uses a special insert and a standard bolt, is being investigated by CIDECT with regard to its axial, shear and bending capacity (see Fig. 3.59) [11 ].

3.5.15 Stud bolting (Fig. 3.60)

Studs can be welded onto the section face. In some cases, the collar has to be cleared by chamfering the hole (Fig. 3.60a) or clearance washer has to be fitted (Fig. 3.60b).

a)

b)

Fig. 3.60 - Stud bolt

3.5.16 General recommendations

1. Accessibility of a joint is of great importance for fabrication as well as for assembly and erection.

2. As mechanical connections do not usually strive for architectural aesthetics, the simple bolted connections suitable for assembly on site and subsequent erection are more acceptable in the field of mechanical engineering. However, they must develop the required mechanical strength along with high cost effectiveness.

3. For bolted joints, where the joining system penetrates the hollow section wall, the question of sealing against water ingress and internal corrosion must be considered, especially for external structures, where any water can freeze and split up the hollow section along its length.

It can be mentioned here that the end plates or sections also seal the members in addition to being load bearing.

4. The "crowding" of a joint by welding or bolting plates or sections is to be avoided as far as possible. These may produce water or snow traps, which may promote external corrosion depending on the ambient condition.

5. When galvanising sub-assemblies with closed end hollow section members, holes must be made in the members for exit of air.

3.6 Assembly

The economic production of a steel hollow section structure is significantly affected by how the members are assembled and how far jigs and preassemblies can facilitate welding or bolting operations. The influencing factors for a rationalised assembly consist of the logistical units to be planned at the project conception, so that optimum cost effectiveness can be attained. The decisions have to be made based on what is available in the workshop, such as required working space, machine tools and especially skilled labour. Further, the handling facilities in the workshop or on site, such as jigs, play a major role in decreasing the production costs. They make the welding positions more attractive to the welders and fitters,

88

avoiding difficult positions for tack welding as well as final welding and thus increase the turnout rates as well as reach a high degree of precision. The application of jigs is also preferred when the number of units is optimum.

Structural hollow sections are very suitable for jig assembly due to their shapes and dimensional tolerances. Further, their strength and stiffness allow them to be assembled and tack welded in a jig or a subassembly unit and then moved to elsewhere for final welding or bolting.

Fig. 3.61 shows a bench type jig for making leg members of towers. It allows the correct positioning, prior to welding of the end flanges and the lateral gusset.

Regarding the tack welding, it is worth mentioning that it must not be applied at corners. Further, backing members must always be tack welded to the root face, never internally. The ends of the tack welds should be dressed to permit proper fusion into the root run.

I Data face

Mobile support chariot allowing translation and rotation of tube

Movable support face with locating dowels, for holding gusset plate in position

Length setting pointer

Fig. 3.61 - A bench type jig (sketch)

3.7 Transport and erection of hollow section structures

Thanks to the favourable mechanical properties of hollow sections, i.e. high torsional rigidity, tensile and compressive strength and multi-axial bending resistance, it is possible to transport and erect large fabricated units of hollow section structures, which may reduce the total building cost substantially.

Lifting and handling operations are greatly facilitated, as shown by the comparison of the lifting of a lattice girder of open sections with that of a hollow section lattice girder. No provisional transverse stiffener is necessary in the case of hollow section lattice girder, but most likely one would be required for a similar construction made of open sections. (Fig. 3.62).

In many transportation cases, especially in the case of road transport, the authorised maximum heights, widths and lengths are limited. These restrictions can be well met by making suitable subassemblies in the workshop and then transporting them to the site of erection. They are fully assembled there by welding or bolting and then erected. Fig. 3.63 shows the configuration and construction of one type of subassembly, which can be economically stowed on a truck.

89

a) Open section

b) Hollow section

Fig. 3.62 - Lifting lattice girders

Fig. 3.63 - Transport of subassemblies by truck

90

4 Design Considerations for Members

4.1 Mechanical properties

The mechanical properties of steels are generally characterized by the yield strength fy, the ultimate tensile strength fu and the elongation Du' These properties are determined by a tensile test and can be given in a 0"-£ diagram shown in Fig. 4.1.

Generally, the design of members is based on yield since the deformation under loads becomes excessive. In statically indeterminate structures, yielding of members or yielding at particular locations provides redistribution of loads. In the latter case, sufficient deformation or rotation capacity should exist. A tensile member made of ductile steel can act as brittle if a particular cross section is weakened, e. g. by holes in such a way that this cross section fails before the whole member yields, i. e.:

Anet· fu < Agross' fy (4.1) In reality the condition is somewhat less restrictive due to contraction aspects. However, it shows that for particular applications the yield to ultimate tensile strength ratio is also important. Some codes, e. g. Eurocode 3, require the following condition for the specified minimum values to be fulfilled:

fu

f:2: 1.2 (4.2)

y

This is only one aspect related to ductility. In the case of impact loading, the steel and members should also behave ductiley. For example in the first world war many welded ships broke suddenly in cold regions. At that time the steels showed a considerably lower ductility after welding, especially at lower temperatures. To characterize the ductility, a Charpy V test has been developed, in which a small steel specimen with standardized dimensions and a standardized V notch is subjected to a shock load. The energy, at which failure is obtained at a particular temperature (the Charpy V value), is a characterization of the ductility (Fig. 4.2) or as used in codes, it is the temperature at which the test specimen can sustain a minimum Charpy V notch energy of 27 Joule, see Appendix C of Eurocode 3 [15].

Nowadays, also more characterization methods exist to characterize the ductility of cracked bodies, e. g. CTOD (Crack Tip Opening Displacement) method. These characterizations are generally used for structures, such as pressure vessels, transport line pipes and offshore applications which are beyond the scope of this design guide.

Another characterization is sometimes required for thick walled sections which are loaded in the thickness direction. In this case, the strength and ductility in the thickness direction should be sufficient to avoid cracking as shown in Fig. 4.3.

This type of cracking is called lamellar tearing, caused by non-metallic manganese-sulphide and manganese-silicate inclusions. Thus, if the sulphur content is very low or the sulphur is joined with other elements such as Ca (calcium), such a failure can be avoided. Indirectly this is obtained by requiring a certain reduction of area RAz in the tensile test. For example, RAz = 35 means that in the tensile test the cross sectional area at failure has been reduced by 35% compared to the original cross sectional area.

In most structural steel specifications the yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, elongation and Charpy values are specified. Design standards or specifications give further limitations for the fuffy ratio, whereas depending on the application more restrictive requirements may be given related to CTOD values or the properties in thickness direction (Z quality).

Another aspect, which should be mentioned here, is the effect of cold forming on the mechanical properties of the parent steel. In case of cold forming of hollow sections, the yield strength and to a less extent the ultimate tensile strength are increased. Further, the yield to ultimate tensile stress ratio is increased and the elongation is somewhat decreased.

91

fv
Tensile strength
'" II
'"
~ I
05
t fv
fv r-- 0.2% strain off-set line

O~---.---.----r---~--.---~ 01 0.04 0.08 0.12 0.16 0.20 0.24

0.002 ____.. Strain

Fig.4.1 - Tensile stress-strain curves

240~--------------------------~

'" ::>

~ 160

>

>

e-120

co s:

U

t 80

40

Brittle

Ductile

Basic material

04---~--~~~--~--~--~--~ -80 -60 -40 -20

o

20

40 60

Fig. 4.2 - Charpy V values in relation to temperature

____.. Temperature (OC)

Fig. 4.3 - Lamellar tearing

92

If the specifications give the properties of the finished product, these properties can be taken into account. However, some specifications specify the material properties of the parent material. In this case, an increased yield strength can be taken into account for design.

Table 4.1 - Increase in yield strength due to cold-forming of RHS profiles

t A k n

specified tensile yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of the basic material (N/mm2)

material thickness (mm)

gross cross-sectional area (mm2)

coefficient depending on the type of forming (k = 7 for cold forming)

number of 90° bends in the section with an internal radius < 5 t (fractions of 90° bends should be counted as fractions of n)

should not exceed fu or 1.2 fyb

Average yield strength:

The average yield strength fya may be determined from full size section tests or as follows: fya = fyb + (k . n . t2/A) . (fu - fyb)

where

fYb' fu =

The increase in yield strength due to cold working should not be utilised for members which are annealed* or subject to heating over a long length with a high heat input after forming, which may produce softening.

Basic material:

Basic material is the flat hot rolled sheet material out of which sections are made by cold forming.

* Stress relief annealing at more than 5aOae or for over one hour may lead to deterioration of the mechanical properties.

Table 4.2 - Minimum corner radii of cold finished RHS [15]

Steel grade Wall thickness t minimum r/t
Ace. to EN 10219 [20] Acc. to [15] (mm)
S 235 Fe 360 12<t~16 3.0
S 275 Fe 430 8 < t s 12 2.0
S 355 Fe 510 6<t~ 8 1.5
t~ 6 1.0 Table 4.3a - EN 10210-1 Hot Finished Structural Hollow Sections Non-Alloy Steel Properties

Steel Minimum yield strength Minimum tensile [Link]. % Impact
designation ReH strength Rm on gauge strength
N/mm2 La = 5.65JSo (10x10 mm)
N/mm2 t s 40 mm*
t~16 16<t~40 t>40mm k3mm 3~t~65 Long. Trans. Temp. J
mm mm mm °c
S235JRH 235 225 215 360-510 340-470 26 24 20 27
S275JOH 275 265 255 430-580 410-560 22 20 0 27
S275J2H -20 27
S355JOH 355 345 335 510-680 490-630 22 20 0 27
S355J2H -20 27 * for thicknesses above 40 mm, these values are reduced

93

Eurocode 3 [15] gives the method shown in Table 4.1 to determine the equivalent average yield strength for the cold formed section. It is noted that the cold formed sections should satisfy the requirements for minimum corner radius to guarantee sufficient ductility, see Table 4.2.

4.1.1 Structural Steels

In recent years, the designation of structural steels has been changed several times and various national codes do not comply with the designations used now in the latest version of ISO and CEN (European) standards.

Tables 4.3a and 4.4a show the mechanical properties of steels that are used for structural hollow sections according to the European standards EN 10210-1 'Hot finished structural hollow sections of non-alloy and fine grain structural steels - technical delivery requirements'. The requirements for cold formed structural hollow sections are contained in EN 10219-1 'Cold formed welded structural hollow sections of non-alloy and fine grain structural steels - technical delivery requirements'. The requirements of EN 10210-1 and EN 10219-1 are almost identical. The Tables 4.3b and 4.4b show variations that occur.

It is possible for structural hollow sections in sfecial steels to be produced, e. g. high strength steels with yield strengths up to 640 N/mm or higher, weathering steels and steels with improved or special chemical compositions, etc.; but often large quantities would require to be ordered.

4.1.2 Structural hollow section dimensions

The dimensions and sectional properties of structural hollow sections have been standardised in ISO standards ISO 657-14 [26] and ISO 4019 [27] for hot formed and cold formed structural hollow sections respectively.

Various national standards are available which may contain these and other sizes. In Europe the two applicable standards are EN 10210-2 'Hot finished structural hollow sections of nonalloy and fine grain structural steels - tolerances, dimensions and sectional properties' and EN 10219-2 'Cold formed welded structural hollow sections of non-alloy and fine grain structural steels - tolerances, dimensions and sectional properties'.

The majority of manufacturers of structural hollow sections do not produce all the sizes shown in these standards. It should also be noted that other sizes, not included in these standards, may be produced by some manufacturers.

Steel Min. elongation, %
designation all thicknesses
tmax = 40 mm
S235JRH 23
S275JOH 22
S275J2H
S355JOH 20
S355J2H Table 4.3b - EN 10219-1 Cold Formed Welded Structural Hollow Sections Non-Alloy Steel- Steel

Property Variations from EN 10210-1

For sections $. 60 x 60 mm and equivalent round and rectangular sections, the minimum elongation is 17% for all steel grades and section thicknesses.

These values have still to be agreed

94

Table 4.4a - EN 10210-1 Hot Finished Structural Hollow Sections - Fine Grain Steel Properties

Steel Minimum yield strength Minimum tensile [Link]. % Impact
designation ReH strength Rm on gauge strength
N/mm2 N/mm2 La = 5.65JSo (10x10 mm)
t S. 65 mm*
ts.16 16<ts.40 t>40mm ts.65 Long. Trans. Temp. J
mm mm mm °c
S275NH 275 265 255 370-540 24 22 -20 40
S275NLH -50 27
S355NH 355 345 335 470-630 22 20 -20 40
S355NLH -50 27
S460NH 460 440 430 550-720 17 15 -20 40
S460NLH -50 27 Table 4.4b - EN 10219-1 Cold Formed Welded Structural Hollow Section Fine Grain Steel - Steel Property Variations from EN 10210-1

Steel Feed stock condition*
designation N M
S275NH 23 24
S275NLH
S355NH 22 22
S355NLH
S460NH 20 17
S460NLH N: refers to normalised or normalised rolled steels.

M: refers to thermal mechanical rolled steels.

* Min. elong. % on gauge La = 5.65 Fa

These values still have to be agreed

Table 4.5a - EN 10210-2 Hot Finished Structural Hollow Sections - Tolerances

Section type Square/rectangular Circular
Outside dimension the greater of ± 0.5 mm and ± 1 %
Welded the greater of ± 0.4 mm and ± 10%
Thickness
Seamless the greater of + 15% - 12.5% and ± 0.4 mm
Mass ± 6% on individual lengths and
+6% -4% on lots of 10 tonnes or more
Straightness 0.2% of the total length, measured at the centre of the
length
Length +6 mm -0 mm, but only for exact lengths
Squareness of sides 900, ± 1° -
Outside 0.5 t to 2.0 t -
Corner radii
Inside 0.5 t to 1.5 t -
Concavity/convexity ± 1% of the side -
Twist 2 mm + 0.5 mm/m - 95

4.1.3 Structural hollow section dimensional tolerances

The tolerances on dimensions and shape are given in ISO 657-14 and ISO 4019 for circular and rectangular (including square) sections respectively. Again, various national standards are also applicable and these mayor may not contain the same tolerances.

In Europe the tolerances are contained within EN 10210-2 and EN 10219-2 respectively for hot finished and cold formed sections, see Tables 4.5a and 4.5b. The majority of the tolerances given in EN 10219-2 are the same as those in EN 10210-2. Where differences do occur, these are indicated in Table 4.5b.

Due to additional mass and length tolerances, considerable variations may occur between the various national standards [52].

Table [Link] - EN 10219-2 Cold Formed Welded Structural Hollow Sections - Tolerance Variations from EN 10210-2

Section type Square/rectangular Circular
Outside dimension <100 mm: the greater of ± 1%, min. ± 0.5 mm
± 0.5 mm and ± 1 % max. ± 10 mm
100.:s, h, b.:s, 200: ± 8%
> 200: ± 6%
Thickness Welded t.:s,5 mm: ± 10% For d .:s, 406.4 mm,
t > 5 mm: 0.5 mm t s 5 mm: ± 10%
t » 5 mm: ± 0.5 mm
For d > 406.4 mm,
± 10%, max. 2 mm
Mass ±6% These values have still to be agreed.

4.1.4 Special shapes

Although circular, square and rectangular hollow sections are the generally used shapes, other shapes are sometimes available. For example, some tube manufacturers deliver the shapes given in Table 4.6. However, these shapes are not further dealt with in this design guide.

Table 4.6 - Other closed shapes available

shape
6 triangular
0 hexagonal
0 octagonal
~ flat - oval 96

4.2 Static behaviour of members

4.2.1 Strength, stiffness and deformation capacity

Nowadays, in most countries design methods using the limit state or the factored load design method are used, i. e. where the effects of the characteristic loads Fk multiplied by a partial load factor YF should not exceed the design capacity which is given by a characteristic resistance Rk divided by a partial safety factor YM:

The YM factors recommended in Eurocode 3 are as follows: - plastic resistance of gross section: YMO = 1.10

- resistance to buckling: YM1 = 1.10

- resistance related to the ultimate tensile strength, e. g. the net section at bolt holes

YM2 = 1.25

However, it should be noted that these partial factors may differ from country to country.

Fig. 4.4 - Moment-rotation curves

In this design guide the limit state approach is used. If anyone wishes to work with working load conditions, the design capacity has to be divided by the appropriate safety factor used in that particular country.

The stiffness of a structure or that of a particular member is always considered under serviceability condition, thus with a load factor YF = 1.0.

The deformation capacity is important in those cases, where redistribution of stresses and loading is necessary. Fig. 4.4 shows various moment-rotation diagrams for a member loaded by bending moments.

The moment-rotation curve "1" shows a moment exceeding the plastic moment and a considerable rotation capacity. Moment-rotation curve "2" shows a moment exceeding the plastic moment capacity; but after the maximum the moment drops directly, so that no moment-rotation capacity exists. Moment-rotation curve "3" represents a capacity lower than the plastic moment capacity, which however exceeds the elastic yield moment capacity. In the moment-rotation curve "4" the capacity is even lower than the elastic yield moment capacity. The effect of the moment-rotation behaviour is reflected in the classification of cross sections

97

0 C\J C\J 00 C!
<0 C\i ci ci
'<t <0
C') C') Ol '<t
io C')
io ~ ~ C"i ~
C') <0 <0 0 Ol
C') C') ,.... l!)
C')
io C')
r-, ~ ~ r...: Ol
C\J ,.... ,.... ,.... «i
'<t '<t ,.... ,..._
io ,..._ 0
C') io l!) C\J ci
C\J '<t '<t ,.... Ol
0 C\J C':! ~ 00
<0
'<t C\J Ol CD io
C') C\J C')
io ~ "<I: 0 C')
io <0 C') 0 «i
C')
C\J C') C') r-, '<t
io ~ Ol l!) 00
,..._ ,.... r...: en en
C\J '<t C') ,..._ io
io 0 0
C') io ,.... «i ci
C\J '<t '<t 00 r-,
0 "! r-, ~ ~
<0 Ll'i
'<t C\J C') io
C') C\J l!) C\J
io <0 C') '": ,....
io «i en C"i
C') ,....
C') C\J <0 C')
,....
l!) ~ C':! C':! t-:
r-,
C\J ,.... C') Ol C\J
'<t C') <0 '<t
l!)
C') io <0 io 0
C\J '<t C') ,..._ io
C\J~ ~ ~
m E ffill\rnu ffir\nn
m .§
ro 11111111111111
u ~
.2" ~DJ ~CJJ ~IDJ (Q)~~\
c c
C 0 0
'00 '00
Q) m m C>
E ~ ~ c
Q) 0.. 0.. '6
Iii E E c
0 0 Q)
o U .0
C •
0 c c
U 0 0
'00 '00
Q) m C> C> m
m ~ c c ~~g'
m 0.. '6 '6 0.. 0 .-
m E E--"O
e c c "0 C
0 Q) Q) o C Q)
U U .0 .0 uro.o
CJ) CJ) CJ) CJ)
I I I I
a: a: a: o 98

C o 'r;; (/)

~

0..

E 8 iii

"C C OJ

~ C o

.!!l c

.2 U

3l

(/)

e

o Q) (5

s:

3:

Q)

-5

c Q) s:

3:

'"

"C

C Cll

C\J

-'::: s:

"C c Cll

13

c Q) Q)

~ 1l

Q) o c

~

Q) ;t=

"C o c

.!!l ~

Q) .r: f-

as shown in Table 4.7. The cross section classification is given in limits for the diameter or width to thickness ratio, i. e. dlt, bit or hit.

The cross section classes 1 and 2 in Table 4.7 can develop the plastic moment capacity up to the given bit or dlt limits with bi-linear stress blocks, whereas the moment capacity of the cross section classes 3 and 4 is based on an elastic stress distribution.

As a consequence, the moment distribution in the structure or structural component should be determined in an elastic way for structures made of sections with the cross section class 2. For structures made of sections with cross sections in class 1, a plastic moment distribution can be adopted.

For a beam fully clamped at both ends and subjected to a uniformly distributed loading q, it means that the beam can be loaded until a further plastic hinge occurs at mid span (see Fig. 4.5).

-b. ql2

Moment distribution for beams with cross sections 2, 3 or 4

M - 1 12 p -16 q

Moment distribution for beams with a cross section 1

Fig. 4.5 - Moment distribution in relation to cross section classification

For the cross section class 4 the maximum stress is determined by local buckling and the stress in the outer fibre is lower than the yield strength fy. Alternatively, an effective cross sectional area based on the yield strength may be determined.

The difference between the cross section classes 1 and 2 is reflected in the rotation capacity. After reaching the plastic moment capacity, the cross section class 1 can keep this capacity after further rotation, whereas the capacity of the cross section class 2 drops after reaching this capacity.

Detailed information about the cross sectional classification is given in the Design Guide "Structural Stability of Hollow Sections" [57].

4.2.2 Tension

The design capacity NtRd of a member under a tensile loading depends on the crosssectional area and the design yield strength, and is independent of the sectional shape. In principle, there is no advantage or disadvantage in using hollow sections from the point of view of the amount of material required. The design capacity is given by:

99