CEng4206-Design of Steel and
Timber Structures
Chapter One
Introduction to Design
of Steel Structures
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Outlines
Introduction
Field of applications of steel structures
Types of steel and structural steel shapes
Mechanical properties of structural steel
Classification of cross sections
Methods of structural analysis and design
philosophies
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Introduction
Structural steel is one of the most important building
materials in the modern era.
It is used solely or in combination with other materials
such as concrete, timber for a variety of purposes.
Structures whose major constituent components are
steel are known as steel structure while those with large
proportion of timber components timber structures.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
The frameworks of industrial building and their
main elements such as beams, girders, crane,
trusses and columns are composed from structural
steel.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Multistory buildings
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Efilles Tower Power transmission pylons
Special structures
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Microwave Communication Facilities
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Tsing Ma Bridge, Hong Kong
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Golden Gate Bridge, Sanfransisco, USA
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Field of applications of Steel structures
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Field of applications of Steel structures
𝑨𝒃𝒂𝒚 𝑪𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒅 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒅𝒈𝒆,𝑬𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒐𝒑𝒊𝒂
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Gas holders
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Field of applications of Steel structures
S t a t i o n
o l i n e
Gas
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Offshore Oil and Gas Exploration/Drilling Facility
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Roof trusses of stadiums and sport facilities
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Exhibition Halls (Long Span Roofs)
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Bracing Systems
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Aircraft Maintenance Hangars
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Industrial buildings
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Air port terminal (Bole International Airport)
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Composite Construction
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Advantages of structural steel
1) High strength – high strength of steel per unit
weight means less dead load.
2) Uniformity – properties do not change appreciably
with time.
3) Elasticity – steel behave closer to deign assumption
than most materials because it follows Hooke’s Law.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
4) Ductility– withstand extensive deformation without
failure. i.e. show evidence of impending failure.
5) High density – non porous
6) Long Life – very durable material and long service
life.
7) Additions to existing structures – new members can
be added to existing frame building.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
8) Time saving – no curing time and scaffolding time.
9) Flexibility in fabrication – geometry, strength and
other properties easily controlled.
10) Re-usable – highly reusable, can be converted to
raw material to produce new sections.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
Disadvantages of structural steel
1) It is very susceptible to corrosion if not properly treated.
Alloying may improve this, but expensive
2) It is low fire resistance, under high temperature the
strength is reduced greatly while deformation increase
dramatically.
Because of this, both structural steel member and rebar are
better to be embedded in concrete or other materials to protect
from fire.
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Field of applications of Steel structures
3) High cost of construction compared to RC
structures
4) High maintenance cost:- expose to water and air
corrodes which requires periodic painting.
5) Buckling:- If slender size, fail due to buckling
rather than lack of strength.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
In general, there are three procedures by which steel
shapes can be formed:
a) Hot-rolled steel,
b) Cold-formed steel and
c) Built up or compound sections.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
a) Hot-rolled steel
Hot rolling is a mill process which involves rolling
the steel at a high temperature.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
Standard Hot Rolled Shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
b) Cold-formed steel
When thinner plates are further rolled or bent after
cooling, the product is called cold-formed steel (i.e.
hot rolled steel that has had further processing).
The steel is processed further in cold reduction mills
where the material is cooled (at room temperature)
followed by annealing and/or tempers.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
Standard Cold Formed Shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
According to the yield strength and ductility point
of view, hot rolled steel sections have high strength
and more life span.
Whereas cold formed steel sections are light gauge
sections used where thicker hot-rolled sections
become uneconomical especially in small buildings
subjected to lighter loads.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
c) Compound sections
are formed by strengthen a rolled section such as
universal beam by welding on cover plates.
Combining two separate rolled sections as in the
case of the crane girder connecting two members
together to form a strong combined member
compound sections.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
are made by welding plates together to form I, H or
box members which are termed plate girders, built-
up column box girders or columns respectively.
These members are used where heavy loads have
to be carried and in the case of plate and box
girders where long spans may be required.
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
Steel Structural Members
Depending on the type of load that a member resist,
structural member can be classified as:
Tension member (Chapter 2) Torsion members
Compression member (Chapter 3) Plate
Flexural member (Chapter 4) Bracing members
Beam-Columns (Chapter 5)
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Types of steel and structural steel shapes
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Properties of particular importance in structural
usage of structural steel are:
i. Strength:- ability of a material to resist stresses.
It is measured in terms of the material’s yield
strength and ultimate or tensile strength .
ii. Stiffness:- is the ability of a material to resist
deformation.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
iii. Toughness:- is the ability of a material to absorb energy
before failure.
It is measured as the area under the material’s stress-strain
curve.
iv. Ductility:- is the ability of a material to undergo large
inelastic or plastic deformation before failure.
Ductility is also enhances the energy absorption
characteristic of the structure which is extremely important
in seismic design.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
v. Fatigue:- it is a progressive localized permanent
damage under fluctuating repeated stress.
Stress-strain curve of structural steel
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Stress-strain curve of structural steel
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Four regions can be seen.
Elastic region
In this region the stress is proportional to the strain
and Hooke's law applies.
The constant of proportionality is the modulus of
elasticity or Young’s modulus .
The modulus of elasticity for steel has values ranging
from .
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
The modulus of elasticity does not vary appreciably
for the different grades of steel used in construction
and a value of is often used for design.
Inelastic region
In this region, the steel section deforms plastically
under a constant stress .
The extent of this deformation differs for different
steel grades.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Ductility is the ability of structural steel to deform
considerably before failure by fracture allows the
structure to undergo force redistribution when
yielding occurs and it enhances the energy
absorption characteristic of the structure.
Generally, the ductility decreases with increasing
steel strength.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Strain-hardening region
In this region deformation is accompanied by an
increase in stress.
The peak point of the idealized stress-strain curve is
the ultimate stress .
It is the highest stress based on original cross-
section size.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Necking and failure
After maximum stress, a localized reduction in area
called necking begins and elongation continues until
specimen breaks.
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Mechanical properties of structural steel
Table 3.1: Nominal values of yield strength and
ultimate tensile strength for hot rolled structural steel
(ES EN 1993-1-1:2015)
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Classification of cross sections
According to ES EN 1993-1-1:2015, steel sections
are classified in to four categories.
a) Class 1 or Plastic cross-sections
b) Class 2 or Compact cross-sections
c) Class 3 or Semi-compact cross-sections
d) Class 4 or Slender (thin-walled) cross-sections
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Classification of cross sections
a) Class 1 cross-sections
Also known as plastic sections can develop their
plastic moment resistance with the rotation
capacity required for plastic analysis without
reduction of the resistance.
Only cross sections falling in this class may only be
used for plastic design.
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Classification of cross sections
b) Class 2 cross-sections
Can develop their plastic moment resistance.
But with limited rotation capacity.
Cross-sections falling in this group are also known
as compact sections.
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Classification of cross sections
c) Class 3 cross-sections
are those which can reach their yield moment.
But local buckling prevents the development of the
plastic moment resistance.
In this class, the stress in the extreme fibers should be
limited to the yield stress.
Cross-sections falling in this group are also known as
semi-compact sections.
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Classification of cross sections
d) Class 4 cross-sections
are those in which local buckling is liable to prevent
the development of the yield moment.
This means premature buckling occurs before yield
is reached.
Cross-sections falling in this group are also known
as thin-walled cross-sections.
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Classification of cross sections
For classes 1 and 2: the plastic moment ()
For class 3: the elastic moment ()
For class 4: the local buckling moment ().
But, for axial compression members classes 1, 2
and 3 becomes one and in the absence of overall
buckling are referred to as compact in this case
class 4 is referred to as slender.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Methods of structural analysis considering material
non-linearity the effects of deformed geometry of the
structure
The internal forces and moments may be
determined using either:
a) First-order analysis:- using the initial geometry of
the structure.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
b) Second-order analysis:- taking into account the influence
of the deformation of the structure.
The effects of the deformed geometry (second-order effects)
should be considered if they increase the action effects
significantly or modify significantly the structural behavior.
First order analysis may be used for the structure, if the
increase of the relevant internal forces or moments or any
other change of structural behavior caused by deformations
can be neglected.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Following a first-order elastic analysis, the calculated
bending moments may modified by redistribution up
to 15% of the peak calculated moments in any
member provided that:
i. The internal forces and moments in the frame
remain in equilibrium with the applied loads,
ii. All the members in which the moments are reduced
have class1 or class 2.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Methods of structural analysis considering material
non-linearity
The internal forces and moments may be
determined using either:
a) Elastic global analysis
b) Plastic global analysis
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
a) Elastic global analysis (ES EN 1993-1.1:2015 section 5.4.2)
Elastic global analysis may be used in all cases.
Elastic global analysis shall be based on the assumption that the
stress-strain behavior of the material is linear whatever the stress
level.
This assumption may be maintained for both first-order and second
order elastic analysis even where the resistance of a cross- section is
based on its plastic resistance.
Elastic global analysis may also be used for cross sections the
resistances of which are limited by local buckling.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
b) Plastic global analysis
Plastic global analysis allows for the effects of
material non-linearity in calculating the action
effects of a structural system.
May be used where the members are capable of
sufficient rotation capacity to enable the required
redistributions of bending moments to develop.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Plastic global analysis should only be used where
the stability of members at plastic hinges can be
assured.
Plastic global analysis may be utilized in the global
analysis of structures of their elements provided that
the steel complies with the following ductility
requirements:
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
i. The ration of the specified minimum ultimate tensile
strength to the specified minimum yield strength satisfies.
ii. The elongation at failure on a gauge length of (where
is the original cross section area) is not less than .
iii. The stress-strain diagram should show the ultimate
strain is at least 15 times the yield strain .
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Plastic global analysis may be modelled by one of
the following methods:
i. By elastic-plastic analysis
ii. By non-linear plastic analysis
iii. By rigid plastic analysis
Rigid plastic methods should not be used for second
order analysis.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
In rigid plastic analysis elastic deformation of the
members and the foundations are neglected and
plastic deformations are assumed to be concentrated
at plastic hinge locations.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Structural design process
Design is a process used in engineering to specify how to
create or do something.
A design must satisfy such requirements like functional,
performance and resource usage.
The performance of a given structure under given loads
assessed by the structural analysis.
A design philosophy is built up on a few fundamental premises
(assumptions) and is reflective of a way of thinking.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Structural design can be defined as a mixture of art
and science combining the engineer’s feeling for
the behavior of a structure with a sound knowledge
of the principles of statics, dynamics, mechanics of
materials and structural analysis to produce a safe
economical structure that will serve its intended
purpose.
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
It is the process of determining the dimensions and layout
of the load resisting structural components of a structure
to satisfy the purpose of use to possess safety, durability
and to be economical.
Architectural planning and design is carried out to
determine the arrangement and layout of the building to
meet the client’s requirements.
The structural engineer then determines the best structural
system or forms to realize the architect’s concept.
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Applying Design Philosophy
Planning Phase
Preliminary structural design
Load estimation
Revise the structural
Structural Analysis
design
No
Are the structure & its
components safe & serviceable?
Yes
Construction Phase
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Methods of structural analysis and design philosophies
Design Philosophies
So, to achieve safe and economic structures, three
philosophies of design had been adopted by codes of
practices.
a) Allowable Stress Method of design (ASM)
b) Ultimate Load Method of design (ULM)-Plastic
design
c) Limit State Method of design (LSM)
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