Structural and Seismic Design of a Steel Staircase using FEM in compliance with Italian Legislation

Abstract

Structural analysis is conducted by the displacement method for evaluation of the stress-strain state induced by static loads. The analysis is conducted by the modal analysis and acceleration response spectrum method for the evaluation of the stress-strain state induced by dynamic loads (including seismic loads).
Structural analysis is carried out using the finite element method. The above method is based on the schematization of the structure into elements connected only at a set number of points called nodes. The nodes are defined by the three Cartesian coordinates in a global reference system. The unknowns of the problem (within the displacement method) are the displacement components of the nodes referred to the global reference system (translations according to X, Y, Z, rotations around X, Y, Z). The solution of the problem is obtained by a system of linear algebraic equations whose known terms consist of the loads acting on the structure appropriately concentrated at the nodes.

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