Study on fatigue property of steel–concrete composite beams and studs

•The review of literatures on fatigue behavior of composite beams was made.•The fatigue test on seven specimens was carried out.•The calculation method for the deflection of composite beams was proposed.•The provisions in Codes for fatigue life of studs were summarized and evaluated.

The fatigue problem of steel–concrete composite beams has been paid attention to in recent years, and the review of available literatures about the fatigue behavior of studs, including fatigue life and slip, was firstly made. In order to study the fatigue behavior of studs in steel–concrete composite beams, the fatigue test on seven specimens was carried out. The shear fatigue failure of studs was the fatigue failure mode of specimens, with good ductility. The fatigue life was significantly affected by the shear stress amplitude of studs. Then the calculation method for the deflection of steel–concrete composite beams was proposed, and the good agreement with test results indicated that the proposed method was effective. Furthermore, the influences of various parameters on the deflection of steel–concrete composite beams subjected to fatigue load were also analyzed. Based on a large number of fatigue test data of studs, the provisions in various Codes were summarized and evaluated, showing that the equation in AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials) was the safest equation for predicting the fatigue life of studs in practical design.