COLD FORMED STEEL

SECTIONS - I

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
1
COLD FORMED STEEL SECTIONS- I

 Introduction
 Advantages of cold formed sections
Stiffened and unstiffened Elements
Local buckling, Effective width concepts
Beams
Design considerations: web crushing, web

buckling and lateral buckling

Conclusion

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
2
 INTRODUCTION
– extensively used in building industry
– manufactured by forming thin steel sheets in cold
state
– also called Light Gauge Steel Sections or Cold
Rolled Steel Sections
– number of pairs of rolls (called stages) depends on
the complexity of the cross sectional shape
– alternative method of forming is press – braking
– galvanising provides protection against corrosion
– normally, yield strength is at least 280 N/mm2

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
3
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
4
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
5
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
6
 ADVANTAGES
• Cross sectional shapes formed to close tolerances
and can be consistently repeated for as long as
required.
• Any desired shape of any desired length can be
produced.
• Pre-galvanised or pre-coated metals have high
resistance to corrosion, besides having an attractive
surface finish.
• All conventional jointing methods, (i.e. riveting,
bolting, welding and adhesives) can be employed.
• High strength to weight ratio.
• light and easy to transport and erect.
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
7
Typical Cold Formed Steel Profiles

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
8
 Stiffened and Unstiffened Elements

- stiffened element - an element which is supported

by webs along both its longitudinal edges.
- unstiffened element - supported along one
longitudinal edge only with the other parallel edge
being free to displace
- intermittently stiffened element - made of a very wide
thin element divided into two or more narrow sub
elements by the introduction of intermediate
stiffeners, formed during rolling.

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
9
Stiffened and Unstiffened Elements - 2

Stiffened Unstiffened
element element
Intermediate
stiffener

Lips

Intermittently stiffened
element Edge stiffened
element

Stiffened and Unstiffened Elements

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
10
 LOCAL BUCKLING

• Elastic Buckling of Thin Plates

A flat plate simply supported on all edges and loaded in

compression will buckle at an elastic critical stress given
by
2 2
K E t
pcr   
2
12 ( 1   )  b 

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
11
Local Buckling- 2

Supported
(a) Axially compressed plate simply
edge
supported on all edges
Supported
edge

Supported
edge
Edge free
to move (b) Axially compressed plate with
one edge supported and the other
edge free to move

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
12
Local Buckling - 3

Edge stiffened
element

Unstiffened
element with Internal element with
an edge free supported edges Edges stiffened to prevent
to move free movement

Internal
element

Section with unstiffened The same section with

element stiffened outstands

The technique of stiffening the element

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
13
 Local Buckling - 4

• Post - Critical Behaviour

M


(a) Buckled Shape
M
 b
b eff
2

(b) Stress Distribution


(c) Effective width Local Buckling Effects

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
14
 Local Buckling - 5

• flat plates would buckle instantaneously at the elastic

critical load.
• Under incremental loading, plate elements which are
not perfectly flat will begin to deform out of plane
from the beginning rather than instantaneously at the
onset of buckling and fail at a lower load.
• a non-uniform state of stress exists throughout the
loading regime. This tendency is predominant in
plates having b/t (breadth/thickness) ratios of 30-60.
• for plates having a b/t value in excess of 60,
“membrane stresses” resist further buckling .

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
15
Local Buckling - 6

Flat plates

stress
Mean

Plates with initial

imperfections
pcr

Lateral
Initial imperfection deflection 

Mean stress Vs Lateral deflection relation

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
16
 Local Buckling - 7

• Effective Width Concept

• Lightly stressed regions at the centre are least

effective.

• Regions near the supports are far more effective.

• The effective width, (beff) multiplied by the edge stress

(e) is the same as the mean stress across the section
multiplied by the total width (b) of the compression
member.

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
17
 Local Buckling - 8
• The effective width of an element under compression is
dependent on the magnitude of the applied stress fc, the
b/t ratio of the element and the edge support conditions.

• BS 5950 Code Provisions

when fc > 0.123 pcr, then

 4  0.2
beff 
  f 
0.5 
 1  14   c   0.35  
b   pcr  
 
  
when fc < 0.123 pcr, then beff = b

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
18
Local Buckling - 9

beff / b

1.0

0.8
0.6

0.4
0.2

50 100 150 200 250 b/t

Ratio of effective width to flat width (fy = 280 N/mm2) of compression
plate with simple edge supports

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
19
 Local Buckling - 10

• Buckling coefficient, K (BS 5950, Part 5) for channel

element
B2

• Lipped channel B1

For the member having the width of B1

1.8 h
K1  7   1.43 h 3
0.15  h
For the member having the width of B2
2
2  t1 
K 2  K 1 h  
 t2 
where h = B2 / B1
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
20
Local Buckling - 12
B2

2.  Plain channel (without lips) B1

for the element of width B1

2 2  4.8 h
K1  
1  15 h 3 0.5 
1  15 h 3 
for the element of width B2
 t1 
K 2  K 1 h   2

 t2 
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
21
Local Buckling - 13
• Maximum width to thickness ratios (IS: 801 and BS
5950, Part 5 )

• Stiffened elements with one longitudinal edge

connected to a flange or web element and the other
stiffened by a simple lip: 60

• Stiffened elements with both longitudinal edges

connected to other stiffened elements: 500

• Unstiffened compression elements: 60

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
22
Local Buckling - 14

• Treatment of Elements with Stiffeners

• Edge Stiffeners

Elements having b/t  60 and provided with simple lip

having one fifth of the element width may be regarded
as a stiffened element

If b/t > 60, then the lip itself may have stability
problems. Therefore “compound” lips are designed.

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
23
 Local Buckling - 15

• Intermediate stiffeners

Intermediate stiffeners is used to transform a wide and

ineffective element into highly effective element
o
w
o

Intermediate
t stiffener

The required minimum moment of inertia of the stiffener about the

axis 0-0
2
 w  fy 
I min 4
 0.2 t .     
t  280 

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
24
 Local Buckling - 17

• Proportioning of Stiffeners

• Performance of unstiffened elements can be

substantially improved by
 introducing stiffeners such as lip.
 introducing intermediate stiffeners.
 According to BS 5950, an unstiffened element can
be regarded as a stiffened element, when the lip or
the edge stiffener has a moment of inertia about an
axis through the plate middle surface equal to or
greater than b3 t
I min 
375
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
25
Local Buckling - 18

• The Indian standard IS: 801-1975 prescribes a

minimum moment of inertia for the lip given by

I min  1.83 t 4 w t  2
 281200
Fy
Imin should not be less than 9.2 t4 .

•For a simple lip bent at right angles to the stiffened

element, the required overall depth dmin is given by

d min  2.8 t 6  t
w
2
 281200
Fy
dmin should be less than 4.8 t

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
26
Local buckling - 19

• Intermediate Stiffeners.

 used to split a wide element into a series of

narrower and therefore more effective elements.

(For Equations , please refer the paper)

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
27
 Beams
• Laterally stable beams - Beams, which do not
buckle laterally .
• Designs may be carried out using simple beam
theory, making modifications for local buckling of
the webs.
• This is done by imposing a maximum compressive
stress,(which may be considered to act on the
bending element ) given by

 D fy 
pO  1.13  0.0019  p y  f y
 t 280 

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
28
Beams - 3

• Other Beam Failure Criteria

1. Web Crushing
Generally occurs under concentrated load or at
support point when deep slender webs are employed.
Web cleat used to
Space between bottom avoid web crushing
flange and supporting beam

(a) Web crushing (b) Cleats to avoid web

crushing
Web crushing and how to avoid it

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
29
Beams - 3

   Shear Buckling

• Thin webs subjected to predominant shear will buckle.

• The maximum shear in a beam web is invariably limited
to 0.7 times yield stress in shear.
• In deep webs, where shear buckling can occur, the
•average shear stress (pv) must be less than

2
 1000 t 
pv   
 D 
W
Web buckling
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
30
Beams - 4

• Lateral Buckling

 The great majority of cold formed beams are (by

design) restrained against lateral deflections.
 Lateral buckling will not occur if the beam under
loading bends only about the minor axis.
 Lateral buckling occurs only in "long" beams and is
characterised by the beam moving laterally and
twisting when a transverse load is applied

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
31
Beams - 5

Bending and
twisting

Lateral Buckling

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
32
Beams - 6

• The design approach is based on the "effective

length" of the beam for lateral buckling, which is
dependent on support and loading conditions.

• The elastic lateral buckling moment capacity ,

2
 A E  D
2
1  e t 
ME   Cb 1 
2  e / ry  20  ry D 

2
where,

Cb = 1.75 - 1.05  + 0.3  2  2.3.

 = ratio of the smaller end moment to the larger
end moment
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
33
Beams - 7

M Single Curvature M

M M
Double Curvature

Single and Double Curvature Bending

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
34
Beams - 8

Perry-Robertson type equation is employed for

evaluating the Moment Resistance of the beam

Mb 
1

2

M y  ( 1  ) M E   M y 
  1   M E  4 M y  M E 
2


My = First yield moment given by the product of yield

stress (fy ) and the Elastic Modulus (Zc) of the
gross section.
 
ME = Elastic lateral buckling resistance moment

 = Perry coefficient 
©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –
IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
35
 CONCLUSION
• The difference between cold rolled steel and hot
rolled steel has been discussed and the merits of
the former are outlined
• The concepts of "effective width" and "effective
section" employed in the analysis and design of
cold rolled section are explained.
• The difference between "stiffened" and
"unstiffened" elements is explained.
• Considerations in the design of cold rolled beams
have been explained

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
36
 THANK YOU

©Teaching Resource in Design of Steel Structures –

IIT Madras, SERC Madras, Anna Univ., INSDAG
37