Imperfections Sensitivity Analysis of Stainless Steel Equal-Legs Angle Subjected to Compression

Abstract

This paper presents a numerical analysis of initial geometrical imperfections sensitivity in fixed-end hot-rolled stainless steel 304 equal-leg angle columns under flexuraltorsional buckling. Experimental measurements evidenced that equal-leg angle columns exhibit three initial geometrical imperfections types, specifically: minor-axis bending (d_m), major-axis bending (d_M), and cross-section torsional rotation (β). Therefore, using the numerical finite element model in Ansys software, validated with the experimental results, analyses were performed to investigate the influence of the initial geometrical imperfections on the ultimate loads of fixed-end columns failing by flexural-torsional buckling.

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