Effect of floor openings on the capacity of composite space trusses

Presenting the composite deck, which consists of concrete slab with profiled steel sheets fixed to the top layer of Double Layer Grid (DLG), proved its great efficiency in increasing the load carrying capacity for this type of structures. Earlier studies concluded that the application of the prescribed composite action had solved many problems facing the spread of DLG structures such as their prone to collapse in a progressive manner besides their suitability to be used only as roof covering structures. In addition, the application of the composite action introduced an economical solution due to considerable savings in steel material used in building the top layer of the DLG structures. However, openings in the deck are needed for architectural purposes such as passing service ducts, day-lighting panels or passing shear walls or continuous structural elements. Adding such openings in the deck affects the efficiency of the composite deck in carrying the assigned loads especially if the openings are being added after the construction is completed. The current research introduced experimental tests along with numerical investigation using ABAQUS software for composite deck space trusses with common cases of support patterns and different deck opening locations. The study shows the obvious effect of the existence of openings and their locations on the load carrying capacity and ductility of DLG space structures.