26 NEURAL DYNAMICS MODEL FOR ENGINEERING DESIGN OPTIMIZATION

3.3.7
Constraint on Flange Curling
Curling of both tension and compression flanges towards the neutral axis is a concern for unusually wide
and thin flanges. Excessive curling reduces the bending capacity of the section and impairs its appearance.
To limit flange curling to a given value, cf, the following constraints must be satisfied:

(3.13)

(3.14)

where wf represents the limiting value for the length of the flange projecting beyond the web for unstiffened
flanges (the I and Z shapes) or half the distance between webs for stiffened flanges (the hat shape) and is
given by

(3.15)

in which fav is the average stress in the full, unreduced flange width. Curling on the order of 5 percent of the
beam depth is not uncommon. Appearance considerations may dictate the choice of cf.

3.3.8
Local Buckling Constraints
The AISI ASD and the LRFD Specifications require that the flat-width-to-thickness ratio of the
compression flange be limited to 500 for stiffened flanges and 60 for unstiffened flanges. For beams with no
web stiffeners, which is often the case, the web flat-width-to-thickness ratio is limited to 200.
For flange local buckling, when the top flange is in compression:

(3.16)

(3.17)

and when the bottom flange is in compression:

(3.18)

For web local buckling:

(3.19)