ADVISORY DESK

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AD 249

Design of Members Subjected

to Torsion
We have recently received a number of questions in relation to structural
steel members subjected to torsion. From these calls it is evident that there is
some confusion over the difference in behaviour of open and closed crosssections. In response to these queries, it therefore seems timely to present a
qualitative background to the theory of torsion.
Torsional loading can arise within members in two ways: an externally
applied torque; or when the applied load acts eccentrically to the shear centre
of the cross-section. In both cases, the member will twist about its
longitudinal axis, which passes through the shear centre of the cross-section.

Reference will be made below to warping, which is best described by

considering the rectangular hollow section shown in Fig. 3. In the initial
conditions, the ends of the hollow section are rectangular and plane. Suppose
that a slit is made along one side of this section (thereby transforming it
from a closed section to an open section), and one end is twisted relative to
the other. As can be seen in Fig. 3, in response to this applied torque, the
ends of the hollow section remain rectangular, but are no longer plane. This
distortion of the cross-section is called warping, and is particularly
pronounced in I-beams.

Categories of cross-sections
Torsional loading has a significant influence on the initial choice of section
for maximum structural efficiency. I-shaped sections are particularly poor in
resisting torsion while hollow sections can be very effective. A distinction is
normally made between these two types of sections, by calling I- and
Channel sections (which are poor in resisting torsion), Open Sections (fig. 1);
while rectangular and circular hollow sections (which are more effective in
resisting torsion), are referred to as Closed Sections (fig. 1).

Fig. 3 Warping of a split (open) rectangular hollow section

The total resistance of a structural member to torsional loading may be
considered to be the sum of two components namely, uniform torsion and
warping torsion. In some cases, only uniform torsion occurs. Whereas, when
both uniform torsion and warping torsion are included in the torsional
resistance, the member is in a state of non-uniform torsion. A diagrammatic
representation of uniform and non-uniform torsion, on a member composed
of an I-section, is shown in Fig. 4.
Fig. 1. Open and closed structural sections
Location of shear centre and its significance
The position of the shear centre is of particular importance in design, since
when a load is applied to a member, a torque will develop if the applied load
does not act through the shear centre of the cross-section. In these
circumstances, the torque is simply equal to the applied load multiplied by
its eccentricity from the shear centre. A cross-section having two axes of
symmetry has its shear centre located at the centre of gravity of the crosssection (fig. 2a). With one axis of symmetry, the shear centre lies on that axis,
but will in general not coincide with the centre of gravity (fig. 2b). However,
for a section having skew-symmetry, the shear centre and the centre of
gravity do coincide (fig. 2c). For angle sections, the shear centre is located at
the intersection of the two legs (fig. 2(d)).

Fig. 4. Uniform and non-uniform torsion of a member composed of an Isection (viewed on plan)

Fig. 2. Location of shear centre s and centre of gravity c

Uniform torsion
When a member is subjected to uniform torsion (sometimes referred to as
pure or St Venant torsion), the rate of change of the angle of twist is constant
along the member, and the longitudinal warping deflexions are also constant
along the member (fig. 4a). In this case, the torque acting at any cross-section
is resisted by a single set of shear stresses distributed around the crosssection (fig. 5). The ratio of the torque T to the twist rotation per unit
length, is defined as the torsional rigidity GJ of the member; where G is the
shear modulus and J is the torsion constant (sometimes called the St Venant
torsion constant).

rigidities are very small, behave in this way. Between these extremes, the
applied torque is resisted by a combination of the uniform and warping
torsion components, and the member is in the general state of non-uniform
torsion. This occurs for intermediate values of the parameter K, as shown in
Fig. 7, which are appropriate for most open sections such as hot-rolled I- or
channel sections.

Fig. 5. Shear stresses due to uniform torsion of (a) closed sections; and (b)
open sections
Non-uniform torsion
When a member is subjected to non-uniform torsion, the rate of change of
the angle of twist varies along the member (fig. 4b and c). In this case, the
warping deflexions vary along the member and, to resist the applied torque,
an additional set of shear stresses act in conjunction with those due to
uniform torsion. The stiffness of the member associated with these
additional shear stresses is proportional to the warping rigidity EH; where E
is the modulus of elasticity and H is the warping constant.
For a member composed of an I-section, the action of warping resistance can
be visualised as follows: the torque T is resisted by a moment comprising of
forces equal to the shear forces in each flange, which are separated by the
lever arm, df equal to the depth between the centroids of the two flanges. If
each flange is treated as a beam, the bending moments produced by these
forces lead to the warping normal stresses, as shown in Fig. 6b.
For an I- or H-section, this approach provides a reasonable approximation,
but will generally over-estimate the warping normal stress whilst underestimating the warping shear stress (since the approach ignores the shear
stresses from uniform torsion). However, it cannot be readily applied to
channel sections; in such circumstances, more rigorous methods of analysis
need to be adopted.

Fig. 7. Effect of cross-section on torsional behaviour

Whether a member is in a state of uniform or non-uniform torsion also
depends on the loading arrangement and the warping restraints. If the
torsion resisted is constant along the member and warping is unrestrained
(as shown in fig. 4a), then the member will be in uniform torsion, even if the
torsional rigidity is very small. If, however, the torsion resisted varies along
the length of the member (fig. 4b), or if the warping displacements are
restrained in any way (fig. 4c), then the rate of change of the angle of twist
rotation will vary, and the member will be in a state of non-uniform torsion.
As a result of applying a torque to a member, the torsional stresses induced
within the section, which should be considered in design, are:
(a) Shear stresses due to uniform torsion.
(b) Shear stresses due to warping torsion.
(c) Bending stresses due to warping.
Each of the above stresses is associated with the angle of twist , or its
derivatives. Hence, if is determined for different positions along the
member length, the corresponding stresses can be evaluated at each position.
Torsion of closed sections
As discussed above, the torsional rigidity GJ of a closed section is very large
compared with its warping rigidity EH (fig. 7). Therefore, a member
composed of a closed section may be considered to be subject only to
uniform torsion. For a rectangular or circular hollow section, the uniform
torsion will result in a uniform shear stress developing within the walls of
the cross-section (fig. 5a). In these circumstances, the problem is statically
determinate, and the shear stress as well as the angle of twist may be
determined from simple statics.

Fig. 6. Warping stresses in an open section member composed of an I-beam

Effect of cross-section on torsional behaviour
Before examining how different types of sections perform in resisting
torsion, it is useful to first introduce the non-dimensional torsion parameter
for the member:

For sections that have a very high torsional rigidity GJ compared to their
warping rigidity EH, K becomes small; in these circumstances the member
will effectively be in a state of uniform torsion (as indicated in Fig. 7). Closed
sections, whose torsional rigidities are very large, behave in this way, as do
sections whose warping rigidities are negligible, such as angle and Tsections.
Conversely, for sections whose warping rigidity EH is very high compared to
their torsional rigidity GJ, K becomes very large, and the member is in the
limiting state of warping torsion (as indicated in Fig. 7). Very thin-walled
open sections, such as light gauge cold-formed sections, whose torsional

Torsion of open sections

As discussed above, for members composed of open sections such as hotrolled I- or Channel sections, the section may be considered to be subject to
the general state of non-uniform torsion (fig. 7). In these circumstances, the
applied torque is resisted by a combination of uniform torsion and warping
torsion components.
Uniform torsion
If a torque is applied to the ends of a member, in such a way that the ends are
free to warp, then the member will only develop uniform torsion (fig. 4a). The
resulting shear stresses will vary linearly across the thickness of the element
(fig. 5b): they are maximum at the element surfaces, with two equal values,
but opposite in direction. These stresses are a function of the rate of change
of the angle of twist, and are greatest in the thickest element of the crosssection i.e., typically the flanges in an I-beam. (At junctions between the web
and the flanges, the local shear stresses may exceed the stresses in the
thickest element of the cross-section; for rolled sections, this effect may be
neglected by the designer, as allowance for the root fillet radii are made in
determining the torsional constant J in section property tables).

Warping torsion
When a uniform torque is applied to a member restrained against warping,
the section itself will be subject to non-uniform torsion with the rate of
change of the angle of twist varying along the length of the member (fig. 4c).
The rotation of the section with respect to a restrained end will be
accompanied by bending of the flanges in their own plane (sometimes
referred to as the Bimoment). The warping normal and warping shear
stresses developed by this condition are shown in Fig. 6. Warping stresses
are also generated in members of open section when the applied torque
varies along the length, even if the ends are free to warp (fig. 4b).

(iii) Torsion free, warping free

This condition is achieved when the end is free to warp and twist
(sometimes referred to as a Free torsional end condition): the
unsupported end of a cantilever illustrates this case.

End conditions
As discussed above, the end conditions will also greatly influence the
torsional stresses along the member. Note that end conditions for torsion
calculations may be quite different from those for bending e.g., a beam may
be supported at both ends, but torsionally restrained at only one end: the
torsional equivalent of a cantilever. Torsional fixity must be provided by at
least one point along the length of the member, otherwise it will simply
physically twist when the torque is applied. Also, warping fixity cannot be
provided without also providing torsional fixity. As a result, there are three
possible boundary conditions which may sensibly considered in torsion
calculations:
(i) Torsion fixed, warping fixed
This condition is satisfied when, at the ends of the member, both twisting
about the longitudinal axis and warping of the cross-section are
prevented (sometimes referred to as a Fixed torsional end condition).
Effective warping fixity is practically almost impossible to achieve in
most structures. A connexion providing fixity in both directions is not
sufficient, it is also necessary to restrain the two flanges either side of the
web. Details such as those shown in Fig. 8a need to be provided to
achieve this type of boundary condition. It should be noted, however, that
the provision of warping fixity does not produce such a large reduction in
torsion stresses as is obtained from bending fixity. Therefore, it is more
practical to assume warping free connexions (see (ii) below), even when
fixity is provided in terms of bending.
(ii) Torsion fixed, warping free
This is satisfied when the cross-section at the ends of the member is
prevented from twisting, but is allowed to warp freely (sometimes
referred to as a Pinned torsional end condition). Such a condition may be
readily achieved by providing the relatively simple standard connexions,
such as shown in Fig. 8b.

Fig. 8. Practical end conditions

The above gives a basic overview of the considerations that should be made
in the design process for structural steel sections, which are to be subjected
to torsion. Design equations for estimating the stresses due to torsion, in
combination with bending, may be found in SCI publication 057 entitled
Design of Members Subject to Combined Bending and Torsion.
Contact: Dr Stephen Hicks: e-mail: s.hicks@steel-sci.com