Stainless steel beam-to-column bolted connection under monotonic loading Abaqus

Product Overview

In this project, an extended end-plate (EEP) stainless steel beam-to-column bolted connection is modeled using the Abaqus software.

The numerical model represents the EEP connection investigated in the reference experimental study. The connection consists of a stainless steel beam and column connected through an extended end plate and 6 bolts.

A monotonic displacement-controlled load is applied to the end of the beam, and the nonlinear structural response of the connection is investigated through the resulting moment–rotation response.

Model Description

The connection consists of a stainless steel beam, column, extended end plate, and bolts. The beam is welded to the end plate, while the end plate is connected to the column using 6 bolts.

Monotonic Loading

A monotonic displacement-controlled load is applied to the end of the beam to investigate the nonlinear response of the EEP connection.

The beam displacement is increased progressively during the analysis, allowing the connection to develop its stiffness, moment resistance, and deformation under increasing load.

Moment–Rotation Diagram

The moment and rotation values are obtained from the Abaqus results and used to draw the moment–rotation diagram.

The numerical moment–rotation response is compared with the experimental results reported in the reference article.

Comparison with Experimental Results

Under monotonic loading, the EEP connection develops a typical T-stub deformation in the tension region. This deformation involves the beam tension flange and the portion of the end plate between the tension bolt rows.

The analysis also shows noticeable bending of the column flange in the compression region. This deformation is associated with the bearing action of the beam compression flange against the column flange.

Deformation of the Model

The deformation of the model undergoing monotonic loading can be observed from the Abaqus results.

The numerical model allows the deformation behavior of the stainless steel beam-to-column connection to be investigated during loading.

Validation

This project has been validated by comparing the results obtained from Abaqus with the results reported in the reference article.

The good agreement between the numerical and experimental results demonstrates that the Abaqus model can reproduce the behavior of the tested stainless steel beam-to-column connection.

Key Features

• Stainless steel beam-to-column bolted connection.
• End plate connection with six bolts.
• Welded beam-to-end-plate connection.
• Monotonic loading.
• Nonlinear analysis.
• Moment–rotation analysis.
• Investigation of model deformation.
• Comparison with experimental results.
• Validated Abaqus model.
• Complete Abaqus CAE and INP files.
• Excel file containing the results.
• Reference research paper.
• Step-by-step video tutorial.

What You Will Learn

• How to model a stainless steel beam-to-column bolted connection in Abaqus.
• How to model the beam, column, end plate, and bolts.
• How to define the welded connection between the beam and end plate.
• How to model the bolted connection between the end plate and column.
• How to define six bolts in the connection.
• How to apply monotonic loading to the end of the beam.
• How to perform nonlinear analysis under monotonic loading.
• How to obtain the moment–rotation diagram from Abaqus.
• How to investigate the deformation of the connection.
• How to compare Abaqus results with experimental results.
• How to validate an Abaqus model using experimental results.

Reference

This project is based on the reference research article used for experimental validation. The paper is included with the project files and can be used to review the experimental setup, connection details, loading procedure, and reported results.