Effect of flange restraints on shear Tension Field Action in cold-formed C-sections

The recently incorporated Direct Strength Method (DSM) rules for shear in the North American Specification for Cold-Formed Steel Structural Members (NAS S100:2012) consist of design equations for unperforated sections with and without Tension Field Action (TFA). The TFA is mobilised as a result of the development of diagonal tension due to the full depth bolt restraints. The design shear equations based on a reduction factor α to account for reduced TFA were proposed by Pham and Hancock in cases of partly bolted connections with lateral flange restraints. This paper presents an experimental program to further investigate the TFA of cold-formed C-sections in shear. A total of twelve tests were carried out at the University of Sydney. Three different bolted connection configurations were chosen with and without lateral restraints of the top flanges at the supports. Numerical simulations using the Finite Element Method (FEM) were also performed to validate test results and extend data range. For tests without lateral flange restraints, combined twisting and shear failure modes were observed. The lack of lateral flange restraint leads to a significant reduction of the ultimate load especially when more bolts were removed. Based on these experimental and FEM modelling data, a further reduction factor β dependent upon the slenderness of the sections is introduced in this paper to account for the lack of lateral flange restraint along with the previously proposed reduction factor α which accounts for bolt reduction.