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J. M. Davies, P. Leach
Department of Civil Engineering and Construction, University of Salford,
Salford, UK, M5 4WT
&
D. Heinz
Institut fiir Statik, Technische Hochschule Darmstadt, D-6100 Darmstadt, Germany
ABSTRACT
This paper introduces the second-order terms associated with geometric nonlinearity
into the basic equation of Generalised Beam Theory. This gives rise to simple
explicit equations for the load to cause buckling in individual modes under either
axial load or uniform bending moment. It is then shown how the explicit procedure
can be extended to consider the interaction between local, distortional and global
buckling modes. More general load cases require the use of numerical methods of
analysis and the finite difference method offers a suitable procedure. The success of
Generalised Beam Theory for a wide range of situations is demonstrated by
comparing the results obtained using it with both test results and other analyses. It
is shown that it offers particular advantages in the analysis of buckling problems in
cold-formed sections.
NOTATION
a Amplitude of displacement
B,C,D Section properties for individual modes
E Young's modulus
G Shear modulus
i,j,k Mode number (usually in the form of a forward superscript)
L Length of member
P Defined in text
221
222 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
INTRODUCTION
In a previous paper in this issue it has been shown how Generalised Beam
Theory (GBT) may be applied to first-order problems in which the
response is linear elastic. In this paper the theory is extended to include
the second-order terms associated with geometric nonlinearity. Figure 1
illustrates some typical problems that can be considered by second-order
Generalised Beam Theory:
In Fig. l(a) a slender light gauge steel beam fails by l~.teral torsional
buckling. The problem may also be aggravated by d stortion of the
cross-section.
In Fig. l(b) a hat-section column is axially loaded and again fails by
bending and twisting, again possibly aggravated by distortion of the
cross-section.
J
t
(c)local buckling
in a beam
Fig. 1. Typical second-order problems.
Second-order Generalised Beam Theory 223
Generalised Beam Theory can be used for both bifurcation problems and
the general second-order problem. It can also be used for third-order
problems in which large deflection theory is used to investigate, for
instance, post-buckling problems, but this is beyond the scope of this
paper. The results presented later in this paper are all the results of
bifurcation analyses.
Load
flection
In this equation,
iW is the warping stress resultant in the ith mode;
iJk K is a three-dimensional array of second-order terms which takes
account of all the interactions between in-plane stresses in the faces
and out-of-plane deformations. This includes coupling terms so that
the differential equations become linked and the individual modes
are no longer independent.
It may be noted that if in-plane shear strains are included in the analysis,
the second-order terms are augmented to
However, in the vast majority of practical cases the additional shear terms
have little influence on the results. For the purpose of this paper they will
be neglected.
The expression Z Okx(iwJv')' can be understood as representing the
deviation forces which are caused by axial stresses together with deforma-
tion of the member. The axial stress in the cross-section can be expressed
in terms of the m stress resultants ~Wand warping functions ~u:
m i w in(s)
rx(S) =
--i=1 ic
The elastic inclination of a fibre which results from a deformation JV'(x),
as shown in Fig. 3, is
f
/
Eaj I
The deviation forces q~ and qn caused by the stresses trx and the
deformations Jv"(x) are, according to Fig. 4, in the s direction:
s. f,
~dq~
Fig. 4. Formulation of the deviation forces.
226 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
The virtual work of the deviation forces at the virtual displacement k~" 1,
expressed in terms of kf, and kf, can be introduced directly into the
system of equations:
q~.kf~+qU.kf=__~i=, j=2
~ (~WJV,), i-~
1 f~ iu(2fs *J'~+ ~f *f)t ds
The unified symbol for the integral in the above expression is ijkx, thus:
ijkK = ~-~
1 f iu(Jf s kf s + Jf kf)t ds (3)
where i refers to the stress distribution due to the stress resultants (warping
moments), j refers to the elastic deformation and k refers to the equilibrium
condition in which the deviation forces are involved. The values of Okx
have to be evaluated for the warping moments 1 ~<i ~<m and the deforma-
tion modes 2 ~<j ~<n and 2 ~<k ~<n. The necessary numerical integration is
easy to program once the warping functions and section properties of
GBT have been determined.
It may be noted that for m a n y bifurcation problems, including a number
of the examples given later, a load is applied which is constant over the
length of the member. This is the case when a column is subject to axial
compressive load or when a beam buckles under uniform bending moment.
Derivatives of iW are then zero, and the second-order terms simplify to
i w ~ ijkK JVt'
J
The easiest way to illustrate the use of the augmented GBT equation is by
means of a simple example. Consider the hat-section shown in Fig. 5
acting as a column subject to an axial load through the centroid of the
cross-section. Prior to buckling, the applied load is a uniform axial
compressive stress. In GBT terms, this is the warping stress resultant ~W.
It is assumed that the column behaves as simply supported at its ends with
respect to each buckling mode. As there is no load causing deformation
prior to buckling, the right-hand-side t e r m kq is zero and we have a
bifurcation problem.
The cross-section has the six nodes indicated in Fig. 5, so that General-
ised Beam Theory provides six orthogonal modes of deformation. These
Second-order Generalised Beam Theory 227
IW
"I
modes are, of course, four rigid-body modes and two modes involving
distortion of the cross-section. The relevant section properties are shown
in Table 1 and it may be noted that the third section property kB appears
only in the higher-order distortional modes.
Also necessary for the analysis of this section acting as an axially
loaded column is the array of second-order terms ljkl~. This is shown in
Table 2. The off-diagonal values reflect the degree of coupling between
the modes. For instance, it is immediately obvious that an analysis in-
cluding only modes 2 and 3 would not be profitable because they would
be uncoupled.
Consider the column buckling in a single mode k and assume that the
buckled shape in this mode is given by
kV = ka sin rex
L
Then we have a single governing equation and the only second-order term
which appears in this equation is lkkl~ SO that, inserting k V and its
TABLE t
Properties of Hat-Section Column
Mode k kc kO kB
1. Axial !.7 0 0
2. Bending 9.109 0 0
3. Bending 6"128 0 0
4. Torsion 21.58 0.005667 0
5. Symmetrical distortion 0-07334 0.0002753 0'05769
6. Antisymmetrical distortion 0-06986 0.0002480 0.07872
228 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
TABLE 2
Values of ~JkK
j=k I 2 3 4 5 6
1 -1 0 0 0 0 0
2 0 --1 0 4-423 0 --0-4093
3 0 0 -- 1 0 -0-4088 0
4 0 4"423 0 -28-53 0 2"735
5 0 0 -0"4088 0 -0"4605 0
6 0 -0-4093 0 2"735 0 -0-3675
ka sin T = 0
This equation is an explicit expression for the buckling load and is valid
for buckling in any individual mode. The modes given by k = 2 and k = 3
are Euler buckling about the two principal axes and, for these modes, the
only non-zero generalised warping constant is kc. Furthermore,
so that for k = 2 or k = 3,
lr2 E kC
! W- L2 (tension positive)
W W
I
L I_crit L
(a) (b)
Fig. 6. Alternative buckling characteristics: (a) global buckling, kn = 0; (b) local buckling,
kBv~O.
a more local nature, there is a critical buckling length, as shown in Fig. 6(b),
and long columns will buckle in a periodic mode with this wavelength.
The calculation of the critical wavelength for buckling of a local nature
(either local or distortional) follows directly from eqn (4):
81W
--=0
i.e. - - 2 E k c [ L ] - 3 + 2 kB[L]=o
I~ kc
(5)
wmin
i.e. lkk1K [2x/ERCkB+GRD] (6)
1
230 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
For the hat-shaped example shown in Fig. 5, the shapes for the buckling
curves in the individual modes are shown in Fig. 7. For short lengths up to
about 60cm, the distortional modes 5 and 6 are critical. For longer
lengths, mode 4 (the torsional mode) governs. If we consider the interac-
tion of more than one buckling mode, the principles remain the same but
more terms appear and, in general, the modes become coupled.
As modes 4, 5 and 6 are evidently critical, let us consider the effect of
combining these modes in the analysis of buckling for various lengths L on
the assumption that all three modes have the shape
kV = kasin rexL
Then, substituting into the basic second-order GBT equation gives three
equations of the form:
(IEkCILI4+GRDIL]2+RBIRa+IWIL]2~IjkKJa)sinL =0
E[ I 2
Ekc +GkD+RB
EI21 ka+ l W
1
ljkKJa = 0
SO Dimensions in cm
lW 1w
l L
Length L {cm)
1w 1w
i 1-
0 5O 100 150
LENGTH L (cm)
(a)
Mode 2
Mode 6 .
50
\.\
Mode 4
I- r~ -
o 50 1oo 15o
L E N G T H L (cm)
(b)
Fig. 8. Combined buckling modes for hat-section column: (a) symmetrical modes 3 and 5
in combination; (b) antisymmetrical modes 2, 4 and 6 in combination.
where kP=[EkC[L]2+GkD+B[L]
2]
is a constant for a given length L. This is an eigenvalue problem which can
be solved by any of the usual methods to give three values of 1W, the
lowest of which is the buckling load.
232 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
It may be noted that the more detailed form of the above equation is
0 0 28"53 0 - 35
([: J [
4p 5p
0
0
6p
71_1W
--
0
2"735
0"4605
0
and the fact that the matrix of terms k p is diagonal allows for some
0"3675 J
ka= 0
simplification.
Some results of analyses with different combinations of modes are given
in Figs 8(a) and (b). In Fig. 8(a) the symmetrical modes 3 and 5 are shown
separately and in combination. It can be seen that the interaction is
minimal. Figure 8(b) shows the antisymmetrical modes 2, 4 and 6, the
individual modes being shown by broken lines and the combined modes
by the full line. Here there is a good deal of interaction during the
transition from short wavelength distortional buckling (mode 6) to long
wavelength torsional buckling (mode 4). There is, of course, no interaction
at all between the symmetrical modes shown in Fig. 8(a) and the antisym-
metrical modes shown in Fig. 8(b).
Analysis for elastic buckling failure due to pure bending follows a
similar course and the results are shown in Fig. 9. The only difference is
that the applied load is 3 W and the relevant array of second-order terms is
3jkhc, otherwise the calculations are identical.
It is evident from these examples that the transition from local or
distortional buckling to global buckling can be critical in the design of
thin-walled structural members and that Generalised Beam Theory pro-
BENDING STRESS(kN/cm2)
100 z'
/"
/
",, \...Uod. 6
~"\ "'/~i' ,,'"Mode 5
50
d k4 w,
, Dimensions in cm ~
0
0 50 100 150
LENGTH L (cm)
Fig. 9. B u c k l i n g m o d e s for h a t - s e c t i o n b e a m .
Second-order Generalised Beam Theory 233
INTERMEDIATE NODES
In Fig. 5 and the analyses arising from it, nodes were considered only at
the corners of the cross-section. The six nodes which resulted from this
approach allowed four rigid-body modes and two cross-sectional distor-
tion modes to be included in the analysis. In general, the number of
distortional modes in the analysis is a function of the complexity of the
cross-section.
However, thin-walled structural members such as the one shown in
Fig. 5 may be subject to local buckling of the individual flat elements as
shown in Fig. l(c) in addition to distortional buckling of the cross-section.
It is not always obvious which of these two forms of buckling may be the
more critical for a particular cross-section. In order to include local
buckling of a given fiat element in a second-order GBT analysis, it is
necessary to include an intermediate node at the centre of that element in
addition to the 'natural' nodes at the corners of the cross-section.
In order to illustrate the potential of second-order GBT, various results
obtained using the analyses described above will be compared with a
selection of test results on cold-formed sections and other theoretical
analyses. These examples will include the use of intermediate nodes in
order to identify local buckling modes and their interaction with global
and distortional modes. In each case, the nodes included in the analysis are
indicated on the figures showing the results. Some further comparisons for
cold-formed steel columns subject to distortional buckling are given in
Ref. 1.
P
J
II1
M O M E N T (kN.cm)
600
200
100
v _
8 a
i i i i t i i i i
Fig. 11. Experimental and theoretical results for Lovell test series 'E'.
M O M E N T (kN.cm)
300
= nodes in analysis
....... GBT Modes 1-4
150
+ + 4-
100
50
0 i
L
i
C7 i i
MOMENT (kN.cm)
300
. . . . . . . GBT Modes 1-4
250 -- G B T All M o d e s
---- Yield Moment
-I- Test R e s u l t s
200
150 +
100
12.2
50
0 I I I I I
Fig. 13. Experimental and theoretical results for Lovell test series 'D'.
MOMENT (kN.cm)
1000
600
~ , , J I "-'~l.sL = nodes in analysis
5O0
400
Yieldxmment
300
2OO
100
0 i i i i i i i
Fig. 14. Experimental and theoretical results for Leach test series 'E'.
M O M E N T (kN.cm)
1000
"',.,
600 "',.,
Yield moment ",
'".., .
400 4.0
2oo 1 1
9.0
L
v v :.
0 L
100 150 200 250 300
LENGTH (cm)
Fig. 15. Experimental and theoretical results for Leach test series 'H'.
Second-order Generalised Beam Theory 239
K FACTOR
15
-'- Rhodes
-- GBT All M o d e s
"', /
J
i i i I i
0 20 40 60 80 100 120
LENGTH (cm)
intermediate nodes. This allows the analysis to detect local buckling modes
in addition to the global and distortional modes discussed earlier. Follow-
ing the notation used in Rhodes' paper, 5 the buckling loads are expressed
in terms of the conventional plate buckling coefficient K for the compres-
sion flange which has the value 4-0 for a simply supported long rectangular
plate undergoing local buckling. The agreement between the two methods is
generally good, though GBT appears to be more sensitive for very short
wavelength local buckling. The divergence of the two methods for global
buckling is understood to be a deficiency in the model used by Rhodes for
this particular study, not of the second-order finite strip method itself.
Figure 17 shows a rather complex section. The two methods of analysis
agree quite well over the whole range of lengths considered which include
both local and global buckling. The examples are completed by Fig. 18
which shows another case where the agreement is quite good.
It should be noted that where there is a discrepancy between the finite
strip method and GBT, it is always GBT which gives lower values of the
buckling load. As the finite strip method is essentially an energy method
based on assumed displacement functions, this is to be expected and
reveals the limitations of the energy approach when the assumed functions
are not sufficiently general to model the complex actual deformations of
the member.
240 J. M. Davies, P. Leach, D. Heinz
K FACTOR
15
thickness = 4 mm
--'-- Rhodes
nodes -~10
.... Euler Load
Generalized Theory
,o
10
I,q--
20 4 6 _J~
L
~ . , ,
r i I 1 I i
K FACTOR
15
nodes thickness = 4 mm
400 --- Rhode=
50 f f ..... Euler Load
~e : d Generalized Theory
10
20 ",, L
I i [ i I [ i i I
CONCLUSIONS
REFERENCES