Instability of steel gusset plates in compression

As a result of the structural failure of the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis in 2007, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) issued guidelines for the load rating of gusset plates and recommended that the capacity of these plates on non-redundant steel truss bridges be verified. The purpose of this study is to examine the buckling behaviour of steel gusset plates in greater detail, accounting for parameters that were not explicitly included in the guidelines, such as initial deformations of the gusset plate, stiffness of the framing members, load distribution from the framing members to the plate and load eccentricity. For this purpose, a finite-element model of a gusset plate was developed and verified against experimental measurements. Results show that, for in-plane compressive loads with no moment and no eccentricity, the FHWA guidelines for load rating are conservative and safe for initial out-of-plane deformations up to one plate thickness.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1080/15732479.2013.786102
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/15732479
• Supplemental Notes:
  • This work was authored as part of the Contributor's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
• Authors:
  • Crosti, Chiara
  • Duthinh, Dat
• Publication Date: 2014-8

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 1038-1048
• Serial:
  • Structure and Infrastructure Engineering
  • Volume: 10
  • Issue Number: 8
  • Publisher: Taylor & Francis
  • ISSN: 1573-2479
  • EISSN: 1744-8980
  • Serial URL: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/nsie20

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bridge design; Buckling; Compressive strength; Finite element method; Guidelines; Gusset plates; Load factor; Steel bridges; Truss bridges
• Identifier Terms: I-35 West Mississippi River Bridge (Minneapolis)
• Geographic Terms: Minneapolis (Minnesota)
• Subject Areas: Bridges and other structures; Design; Highways; Materials; I24: Design of Bridges and Retaining Walls; I34: Steels and Metals;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01527878
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jun 6 2014 9:42AM