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TECHNICAL NOTE
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On Cold-Formed Steel Construction

Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute ● Washington, DC ● www.cfsei.org ● 800-79-STEEL

BASIC C-SHAPED WALL STUD BEHAVIOR

Summary: Although cold-formed steel framing shares some limit states with hot-rolled steel, cold-formed steel
framing and specifically C-Shaped studs exhibit unique behaviors when subjected to various loading conditions.
This Tech Note gives an overview of those unique behaviors that need to be considered when designing C-Shaped
cold-formed steel members. 

Disclaimer: Designs cited herein are not intended to preclude the use of other materials, assemblies, structures or
designs when these other designs demonstrate equivalent performance for the intended use. CFSEI documents are
not intended to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.

Cold-formed steel (CFS) wall studs experience limit states similar to hot-rolled steel beam and column
members; however, the thickness and singly-symmetric shape may create different controlling strength
limit states. Unlike thicker doubly-symmetrical hot-rolled steel shapes, CFS wall studs have larger
slenderness ratios and may experience local buckling (web, flange, or stiffening lip) or global buckling of
the member (Kl/r). This Tech Note reviews the most prevalent limit states of C-Shape wall studs and
provides resources for further understanding of each limit state. This is an overview and does not discuss
the limit state of combined flexural and axial loaded stud members nor the implications of sheathing
braced design vs. all-steel design. Refer to AISI S240, Section B3 and AISI S100, Sections E, F, and G for
complete requirements.

(Note: AISI S240-15, North American Standard for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Framing, 2015 Edition
references AISI S100-12, North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural
Members, 2012 Edition. Since AISI S100-16, North American Specification for the Design of Cold-
Formed Steel Structural Members, 2016 Edition has been adopted by IBC 2018, this Tech Note references
AISI S240-15 and AISI S100-16.)
Typical CFS Curtain-Wall Design Limit States:
Curtain-wall studs typically refer to wall studs that resist exterior wind loading, but do not carry
superimposed axial loads from floors, roofs, or other primary structure elements. Curtain-wall studs must
resist shear, bending, web crippling and meet deflection limitations. They must also resist some axial
loading but are primarily designed as flexural members. Axial loading from the wall assembly self-weight
is often negligible relative to its axial strength with light to moderate cladding weight like a metal panel or
EIFS finish. If heavy finishes (large stone or brick) are used, the design must consider combined bending
and axial interaction when analyzing the curtain-wall studs.

The following strength limit states apply to curtain-wall studs [AISI S240, Section B3.2]:

1. Shear [AISI S240, Section B3.2.3]

Wall stud available shear strength is often much higher than required shear strength. Other limit states
will almost always control over shear alone, but shear and bending interactions can control multi-span
members or those with cantilevers.

2. Yielding [AISI S240, Section B1.2.2.3]

Yielding may occur first when the studs are braced to prevent the global buckling limit state. If a
typical wall is braced by sheathing or by discrete braces at 4’-0” OC, a stud may fail by this limit state
prior to global buckling.

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 3. Local Buckling
[No specific AISI S240 reference exists because local buckling is addressed by using the effective
section modulus in the flexural strength calculations.] The web or flange can locally buckle as partially
stiffened or unstiffened plate elements (Figure 1). The interaction of this buckling with global
buckling can control the capacity.

4. Distortional Buckling [1,2 ] [AISI S240, Section B3.2.2.2]

The lip stiffener may not prevent the flange and adjoining web corner from becoming unstable (Figure
1). AISI S100 has design provisions that can be used to predict this limit state. This buckling mode
may be reached prior to the yielding or lateral-torsional buckling limit states when the flange/web
juncture is adequately restrained. AISI allows distortional buckling checks to consider additional
restraint from attached sheathing [G101-08].

5. Lateral-Torsional Buckling (Global) [AISI S240, Section B3.2.2.1]

The singly-symmetric shape deflects with respect to its major axis and rotates about its shear center
and may become unstable (Figure 1).

Figure 1: CFS Buckling Modes (Major Axis Bending)

6. Web Crippling (Figures 2-3) [AISI S240, Section B3.2.5]

This limit can be seen at point loads, supports, or any point loaded location on the stud. It is often
mitigated by utilizing clips, web stiffeners, or other connection methods to reinforce the location
where web crippling may control. The various loading conditions and failure modes can be seen in
Figures 2 and 3 below. Web crippling must also be checked for combined bending and web crippling.

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 Figure 2: Interior-One-Flange Load Web Crippling

Figure 3: Loading Conditions for Web Crippling Tests

(AISI S100-16, Figure C-G5-2)

Typical CFS Bearing Wall Design Limit States [AISI S240, Section B3.2.1]:
Axial load bearing studs typically resist superimposed gravity loads from the primary structure. This is
often encountered when CFS walls must support a floor or roof above including all dead and live loads.
Exterior load bearing studs must be designed for a combination of axial and wind load resistance. Interior
studs do not receive exterior wind loads, but must resist a minimum 5 psf differential pressure along the
wall in combination with all gravity loading conditions.

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 Unlike non-bearing exterior wall studs, bearing wall studs are more often controlled by strength limit states
over deflection limits, so designing in LRFD may lead to some economy in certain circumstances. It is
important to remember that deflection can still control bearing wall studs. An example would be a wall
supporting roof loads in a high wind region; the roof loading may be low enough relative to the lateral
wind loading that the stud deflection controls.
In addition to the limit states noted above, the following limit states will typically be considered in an axial
load bearing wall design.

1. Global Buckling [AISI S240, Section B3.2.1.1] (Figure 4)

Bracing of studs may prevent the weak axis and torsional-buckling from controlling the design so the
strong axis buckling resistance can be better utilized. This includes flexural and flexural-torsional
buckling.

2. Local Buckling
[No specific AISI S240 reference exists because local buckling is addressed by using the effective area
in the axial strength calculations.] Wall stud strength is often controlled by flexural or flexural-
torsional buckling due to their slenderness ratio, but this buckling limit state interacts with local
buckling to lower the member capacity.

Figure 4: Flexural Buckling About the Minor Axis

3. Distortional Buckling [AISI S240, Section B3.2.1.2] (Figure 5)

The stud flanges rotate about their flange-web junction. Similar bracing methods used for flexural-
distortional buckling also restrain axial distortional buckling. AISI S100 has equations for the
prediction of the strength.

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 Figure 5: Distortional Buckling of Compression Member

Note: AISI S100 requires potential reduced capacity be checked due to local buckling interacting with
yielding and global buckling for members in flexure and in compression (See AISI S100, Section F3 for
flexural and AISI S100, Section E3 for compression).

REFERENCES
Design Aids:

For wall stud design examples, CFSEI and AISI have developed the following:

 Tech Note W102-12: Introduction to Curtain Wall Design Using Cold-Formed Steel

 AISI D110-16, Cold-Formed Steel Framing Design Guide - 2016 Edition

 AISI D112-13, Brick Veneer Cold-Formed Steel Framing Design Guide, 2013 Edition

 AISI D113-19, Cold-Formed Steel Shear Wall Design Guide, 2019 Edition

Code References:

 AISI S240-15, North American Standard for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Framing, 2015 Edition
 AISI S100-16, North American Specification for the Design of Cold-Formed Steel Structural
Members, 2016 Edition

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Other CFSEI Resources:

 Tech Note G101-08: Design Aids and Examples for Distortional Buckling (Formerly G100-9)

 Tech Note G103-11a: Tabulated Local and Distortional Elastic Buckling Solutions for Standard
Shapes

 Tech Note G104-14: Welded Box-Beam Flexure Design

 Tech Note TN-559: Design Considerations for Flexural and Lateral-Torsional Bracing

 CFSEI Framing Design Webinars (https://cfseiondemand.com/online-courses/)

Primary author of original Tech Note:

Daniel Stadig, P.E., The Leffler Group

Technical Review:
Roger LaBoube, Ph.D., P.E., Wei-Wen Yu Center for Cold-Formed Steel Structures
Julie Lowrey, P.E., Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety
Rob Madsen, P.E., Devco Engineering, Inc.
Andrew Newland, P.E., ADTEK Engineers, Inc.
Robert Wills, P.E., Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute

This “Technical Note on Cold-Formed Steel Construction” is published by the Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute (“CFSEI”).
The information provided in this publication shall not constitute any representation or warranty, express or implied, on the part of
CFSEI or any individual that the information is suitable for any general or specific purpose, and should not be used without
consulting with a qualified engineer, architect, or building designer. ANY INDIVIDUAL OR ENTITY MAKING USE OF
THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS PUBLICATION ASSUMES ALL RISKS AND LIABILITIES ARISING
OR RESULTING FROM SUCH USE. CFSEI believes that the information contained within this publication is in conformance
with prevailing engineering standards of practice. However, none of the information provided in this publication is intended to
represent any official position of CFSEI or to exclude the use and implementation of any other design or construction technique.
Copyright © 2020, Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute ● Washington, DC ● www.cfsei.org ● 800-79-STEEL

Cold-Formed Steel Engineers Institute 6 TECH NOTE B008-20 October 2020