CST 2010

Tenth International Conference on Computational Structures Technology

Valencia, Spain, 14-17 September, 2010

Distortional Buckling of Stiffened Cold-Formed Steel

Channel Sections

H. R. Naderian1, M. Azhari2, H. R. Ronagh3

1
Department of Civil Engineering, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran,
2
Department of Civil Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan, Iran,
3
School of Civil Engineering, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia

Abstract_ This paper is concerned with distortional buckling of cold-formed steel

channel sections by the semi-analytical complex finite strip method. The main
purpose of this paper is to study the buckling behavior of cold-formed channel
sections with extra longitudinal stiffeners at the end of flanges and also on the web.
One of the most important purposes of this study is to investigate the optimum width
of extra longitudinal flange stiffeners in cold-formed channel sections. Furthermore,
the optimum position of longitudinal web stiffeners is calculated to maximize the
distortional as well as local buckling strength of cold-formed channel sections. For
validation purposes, complex finite strip method results are compared with those
obtained by Generalized Beam Theory (GBT) analysis. Using the semi-analytical
complex finite strip method, a comparison on the buckling behavior of unstiffened
and stiffened cold-formed channel sections in local, distortional and global modes
will be done.

Keywords: buckling, distortional, cold-formed, channel sections, complex finite

strip method, stiffened.

1. Introduction
One of the special benefits of cold-formed steel sections is the ease of creating
the longitudinal web and flange (especially flange) stiffeners. Considering this
feature, many types of stiffened cold-formed sections are produced by the high
stability as well as strength because of having stiffeners. Although stiffeners,
generally, increase the buckling strength of cold-formed structures but on the other
hand they create some problems such as distortional buckling phenomena. For the
same reason, it is important to study cold-formed sections for this buckling mode
and develop appropriate arrangements to deal with this phenomenon. The
importance of distortional buckling is such that some researchers like B. W. Schafer
and colleagues [1], G. Hancock and colleagues [2], N. Silvestre and D. Camotim [3,

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4], and others [5, 6] have been persuaded to present analytical models for this
phenomenon. The majority of these studies are related to channel and Zee sections.
A large number of laboratory tests have been done on distortional buckling of cold-
formed steel members [7, 8]. A series of rich tests have been also done in Thin
Walled Structures Group under the supervision of B.W. Schafer at Johns Hopkins
University in the USA [9, 10]. These tests are not limited to distortional buckling but
cover different range of buckling modes such as local buckling.
In the present study, a semi analytical complex finite strip method is employed to
study the distortional buckling of stiffened cold-formed steel channel sections under
pure compression and uniform bending. However, this method can also be used to
analyze the cold-formed sections in pure shear. For better understanding the
buckling in cold-formed channel sections, besides distortional buckling, other
buckling modes including local, flexural-torsional, and lateral-torsional are also
investigated. For validation purposes, complex finite strip method results are
compared with those obtained by Generalized Beam Theory (GBT) analysis in the
case of predicting the critical stresses and buckling half-wavelengths of web
stiffened cold-formed columns. The optimum width of extra longitudinal flange
stiffener will be evaluated to maximize the critical distortional stress of channel
sections. Moreover, the optimum position of web stiffener in cold-formed channel
section columns is calculated to maximize the local and distortional buckling
stresses. Finally, the influence of stiffeners in cold –formed channel section
columns and beams will be considered in different buckling modes.

2. Definition of the buckling modes

In Figure 1, three different common types of cold-formed steel channel
sections are shown. Although the notion of distortional buckling is widely used,
probably, the only existing definition can be found in the Australian/New Zealand
Standard [11], originated from G. Hancock. It says that distortional buckling is ―a
mode of buckling involving change in cross-sectional shape, excluding local
buckling‖ with the definition of local buckling as ―a mode of buckling involving
(a) (b) (c)

Figure 1: Cold-formed channel sections. (a) Simple channel, U shape; (b)

Stiffened channel, C shape; (c) Stiffened channel with extra longitudinal stiffeners,
Stiffened C shape

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 plate flexure alone without transverse deformation of the line or lines of
intersection of adjoining plates‖. In other words, distortional buckling is a mode
with cross-sectional distortion that involves the translation of some of the fold lines
(intersection lines of adjacent plate elements). Furthermore, local buckling is
normally defined as the mode which involves plate-like deformations alone,
without the translation of the intersection lines of adjacent plate elements; and
global buckling is a mode where the member deforms with no deformation in its
cross-sectional shape, consistent with classical beam theory [12]. Following this,
the three typical buckling mode shapes of the stiffened cold-formed channel
sections (C sections) including local, distortional and global modes are shown in
Figure 2. These figures are derived by authors [13] using open source stability
analysis program: CUFSM software [14].

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 2: Buckling mode shapes of channel sections. (a) Local; (b) Distortional; (c)
Global

3. Semi-analytical complex finite strip method

3.1 General
One of the most important advantages of the semi analytical complex finite strip
method in comparison with other kinds of numerical method is the ability to handle
in-plane displacements as well as out-of-plane ones. On the other hand,
displacements caused by distortional buckling include a combination of out-of-plane
and in-plane types. Therefore, the complex finite strip method can be a suitable tool
for prediction of distortional buckling of cold-formed steel members under different
loading conditions.
In the finite strip method (FSM) a thin-walled member is divided into longitudinal
strips. The advantage of FSM over other methods, such as the finite element method
which applies discreteness in both the longitudinal and transverse direction, is
dependent on a judicious choice of the shape function for the longitudinal
displacement field.
In the original semi-analytical complex finite strip method developed by Plank and
Wittrick [15], elastic stiffness and stability matrices were obtained using standard
finite element techniques based on the energy method. This procedure has been
followed in the present study to obtain the stiffness and stability matrices of a cold-

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formed steel strip. For infinitesimally small buckling displacements, the in-plane and
out-of-plane effects are uncoupled and can be considered separately.

3.2 Displacement functions

The flexural displacement of a strip and the in-plane displacements and in
the semi analytical complex FSM are assumed to be given by
 
w  Re Zdo ei (1)
u  ReXJd e  I
i
(2)
v  ReYJd e  I
i
(3)

where denotes the real part, , and are vectors of

infinitesimal flexural buckling displacements (the vertical deformations and
rotations ) and in-plane displacements comprising the assemble displacements of
the strip ,respectively. , in which is the buckling half-wavelength, and
where is a polynomial interpolation vector and and are interpolation
vectors in the semi-analytical treatment given by
(4)
(5)
(6)

where and is the width of the strip and is a diagonal matrix

defined by
(7)
The selected longitudinal functions result in members that are pinned and free-to-
wrap at their ends. More complicated boundary conditions may be treated [16] but
are not discussed here.

3.3 Strain-stress relations

In accordance with established stiffness procedures, the vectors of generalized
buckling strain and for out-of-plane and in-plane displacements are given by

 
   2 w / x 2  2 w / y 2 2 2 w / xy (8)
 uv  u v 
      (9)
 x y  y x 
The flexural property matrix of an isotropic plate [15] defines the relationship
between the infinitesimal generalized moments and strains for out-of-plane
displacements by
(10)
Also, the buckling internal stress and strains is given by
(11)

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where is the in-plane rigidity matrix of the isotropic plate [15].

3.4 Out-of-plane stiffness matrix

The strain energy stored in the cold-formed steel plate strip results from the
buckling deformation and after some substituting and mathematical manipulation
involving complex arithmetic the out-of-plane standard stiffness matrix is derived
and defined by
1
S o  (b / 2)   Dd
T
(12)
1

where is the matrix defined by

  Z 
 1  
  2   4Z   (13)
b 
4iZ 

in which   b / L and where primes denote differentiation with respect to . After

calculating the decrease in the potential of a cold-formed strip subjected to uniform
longitudinal bending and compression stresses ( and ) during buckling and by
appropriate substitution and integration, the out-of-plane flexural stability matrix
may be obtained from
1
 
Go  (t / 2b)   2 ( L   B ) Z T Z d
1
(14)

in which is the thickness of the strip.

3.5 In-plane stiffness matrix

A similar method to that for the out-of-plane matrices may be followed in order
to obtain the in plane stiffness matrix and stability matrix.
The internal virtual work done in the cold-formed steel strip results from the
buckling deformation and then by some substituting and mathematical manipulation
involving complex arithmetic the in-plane standard stiffness matrix is derived and
defined by
1 1
S I  btJ (   T D  d ) J (15)
2 1

where is the matrix defined by

 iX 
 1  
    2Y   (16)
b
2 X   iY 

5
where primes denote differentiation with respect to . According to reference [15],
is the only stress component that needs to be considered for the in-plane buckling
and there is no conceivable in-plane instability that can arise from the action of the
stress . In order to calculate the loss of potential energy of the longitudinal stress
one can be made use of the following nonlinear expression for the longitudinal
strain
u 1   u   v   w  
2 2 2

x            (17)
x 2  x   x   x   

In this expression the first term has already been accounted for in deriving strain
energy whilst the last term, involving w, has been used in the calculation of the
decrease in the potential of the basic stresses due to the out-of-plane displacement.
Thus, by developing an appropriate expression for the decrease in the potential of
the basic stresses due to in-plane displacement and by appropriate substitution and
integration the in-plane flexural stability matrix may be obtained

  1
G I   2 L t / 2b  J ( X T X  Y T Y ) Jd
1
(18)

Once the strip stiffness and stability matrices , and , have been derived
respectively, and combined for each strip, they can be assembled into the respective
global matrices and using standard procedures. The buckling problem can be
solved by eigenvalue equations

- (19)

where is a scaling factor related to the critical load.

4. Numerical studies

4.1General
A computer program has been developed to study the buckling of simply
supported cold-formed channel section members under different loading conditions
including uniform compression and bending. The effect of stiffeners and their
geometric property on distortional buckling of stiffened channel sections as well as
local and global modes has been investigated.

4.2 Accuracy of the method

In order to evaluate the accuracy and validity of the method for local, distortional,
and flexural-torsional buckling modes, a cold-formed steel C section with
longitudinal web stiffener (E section) as shown in Figure 3 under uniform
compression is studied. The cross section dimensions are given in Figure 3 and one

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 Figure 3: Cold formed E section [17] (dimensions in mm)

(a) (b)

Figure 4: Buckling behavior of simply-supported E-section columns. (a) GBT

results [17]; (b) Semi analytical complex finite strip results

adopts the elastic constant values (Young’s modulus) and

(Poisson’s ratio). For validation purposes, semi analytical complex finite strip results
are compared with values yield by GBT analyses carried out by D. Camotim and
colleagues [17]. Figure 4 shows GBT and semi analytical complex FSM results
concerning the buckling behavior of simply-supported cold-formed E section
columns. The curves displayed provide the variation of column buckling load
with its length in logarithmic scale. It can clearly be seen that there is a virtual
coincidence between the buckling loads and wave-lengths obtained through semi
analytical complex FSM and GBT analyses, which fully validates the latter. The
buckling curves exhibit three distinct zones corresponding to local, distortional and
global (flexural-torsional) buckling.
Table 1 shows the critical buckling loads and lengths obtained by semi
analytical complex FSM and GBT methods for local, distortional and flexural
torsional buckling modes. The ratios of critical buckling loads and lengths derived
by mentioned methods are also shown. The calculated ratios shown in Table 1
demonstrate that the values by semi-analytical complex FSM are in good agreement
with those obtained from GBT analysis for all buckling modes.

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 Table 1: Comparison of critical stresses and lengths

Critical Force
FSM GBT [17] Length Ratio
Ratio
Type
Lcr Ncr Lcr Ncr Lcr(FSM) / Lcr(GBT) Ncr( FSM)/Ncr (GBT)
(cm) (KN) (cm) (KN)

Local Mode 6.30 50.8 ~6 52 1.05 0.98

Distortional
Mode
50.5 43.2 ~ 50 43.5 1.01 0.99

Flexural-
Torsional Mode 200 36.2 200 36.3 1.00 1.00

4.3 Distortional buckling of stiffened channel sections with extra

longitudinal stiffeners
The semi-analytical complex finite strip method has been applied to study the
buckling modes of cold-formed steel stiffened channel section members with extra
longitudinal stiffeners (stiffened C sections). As a sample, a stiffened cold-formed C
section under uniform bending and compression has been considered. The geometric
data and elastic constants are , and
; ; , where and are web depth and flange
width, respectively, is the thickness of the section, and is stiffener width.
Studies show that the angle of the extra stiffener to the horizon and its width
are among the factors that have considerable effect on distortional buckling of
stiffened C sections [15]. For the same reason, the influence of the variation of angle
of the extra stiffener to the horizon and extra stiffener width on buckling
behavior of stiffened C section columns and beams are investigated.

4.3.1 Stiffened C section columns

In Figure 5, the normalized buckling stresses of stiffened C section columns
with is given as a function of the dimensionless buckling half-
wavelength . Several curves are given for different values of theta. The curves
exhibit the same characteristic, namely two minimum points, the first of which has a
minimum value at between 0.1 and 1.5 and second of which has a minimum
value at between 2 and 8. In the first region, the buckling mode is local and in
the second it is distortional. Beyond the second peak, the buckling stress decreases
with increasing half-wavelength until the mode is predominantly flexural-
torsional, as predicted by the Vlasov theory.
As can clearly be seen, with decreasing the angle of the extra stiffener to the
horizon, distortional buckling stress and related half-wavelength increase, however,

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 Figure 5: Buckling curves for different ratios of theta in pure compression

local and flexural-torsional buckling stresses are not sensitive to theta. As an

extreme case, when theta is equal to 90 degree, in practice, this is a cold-formed C
section. Analyzing the curves of Figure 5, it is clear that the distortional buckling
stress of stiffened C section is more than twice as many as C section. In fact, as the
theta decreases the stiffener becomes more effective in distortional mode.
In Figure 6 the influence of different ratios of on buckling stresses of
stiffened C sections under pure compression is examined. Buckling curves in Figure
6 show that the extra stiffener does not have any effect on buckling stress of
stiffened C sections in local and flexural-torsional modes. However, extra stiffener
increases the distortional buckling stress of this section. On the other hand, it can be
seen that when the ratio of increases the distortional buckling stress
decreases. Comparing distortional buckling stresses in different ratios of , it

Figure 6: Buckling curves for different ratios of in pure compression

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can be concluded that the maximum distortional buckling stress in stiffened C
sections occurred in a specific ratio of . For illustrative purposes, the method
has been used to determine the critical distortional stress of stiffened C section.
Two case studies are performed in such a fashion that in each case the section is
under uniform compression. Figures 7 and 8 show the normalized critical
distortional stresses of stiffened C section columns plotted against the ratio
of the width of extra stiffener to flange width . The dimensions of the
sections are shown in the figures. These graphs are produced by plotting
against the half-wavelength, and by fitting a quadratic interpolating function through
three points close to the distortional nadir of the garland-shaped curve. As can
clearly be seen, both graphs have a maximum value at between .05 and .15.

Figure 7: Critical distortional buckling stresses in pure compression; case study 1

Figure 8: Critical distortional buckling stresses in pure compression; case study 2

4.3.2 Stiffened C section beams

Similar studies are carried out on buckling behavior of stiffened C section beams. In
Figure 9 the influence of different ratios of on buckling stresses of stiffened
C sections under pure bending is examined. As an extreme case, when ,
in practice, this is a cold-formed C section. It can be seen from Figure 9 that what
happens to the distortional buckling stress of the stiffened C section beam is similar

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 Figure 9: Buckling curves for different ratios of in pure bending

to that for columns (Figure 6). However, the situation will be different for local and
lateral-torsional modes. Here, buckling curves show that the extra stiffener increases
buckling stress of stiffened C section beams in local and lateral-torsional modes
while it had not significant effect on local and flexural-torsionl buckling of columns
(Figure 6). It should be noted that here the local buckling is never critical but
distortional buckling will be the predominant mode.
An assessment similar to that for stiffened C section columns is made for C section
beams. Two case studies are examined with the same geometric and material
properties of the sections of Figures 7 and 8. In each case the section is under
uniform bending. Figures 10 and 11 show the normalized critical distortional
stresses of stiffened C section beams plotted against the ratio of the width of
extra stiffener to flange width . As can clearly be seen, both graphs show
similar results to that for stiffened C section columns.

Figure 10: Critical distortional stresses in pure bending; case study 1

11
 Figure 11: Critical distortional stresses in pure bending; case study 2

4.4 Cold-formed E section Columns

In order to achieve increased economy and efficiency in cold-formed steel
channel sections, the slender web may be stiffened by longitudinal stiffeners. This
section may be named as web stiffened channel or E section. Local and distortional
buckling of cold-formed E section columns under action of pure compression is
studied using the semi analytical complex FSM. Figures 12 and 13 show the
dimensionless critical local and distortional stresses of the E section against various
positions of the web stiffener for different values of a respectively. The optimum
position of web stiffener to maximize the stresses is found to be and
from the bottom of the section for local and distortional buckling modes
respectively. It is obvious that the optimum position of web stiffener will be
different for E section beams under uniform bending.

Figure 12: Critical local stresses in pure compression

12
 Figure 13: Critical distortional stresses in pure compression

4.5 Effect of longitudinal stiffeners

The method has been used to evaluate the buckling behavior of stiffened and
unstiffened cold-formed channel section columns and beams. For this purpose, in
Figures 14 and 15 the normalized buckling stresses of unstiffened channel (U
shape), stiffened channel (C shape), and stiffened C section in pure compression and
uniform bending have been considered respectively. It can be seen that there is no
second minimum point in the curve of unstiffened channel which means distortional
buckling does not occur in this section. Moreover, by stiffening the channel section,

Figure 14: Buckling curves of channel section columns in pure compression

13
 Figure 15: Buckling curves of channel section beams in pure bending

local, flexural-torsional (in the case of pure compression), and lateral- torsional (in
the case of uniform bending) stresses increase but that the half-wavelength related to
local buckling decreases. In this case, the geometric section properties relating to
flexural-torsional and lateral-torsional buckling resistances such as the minor axis
second moment of area , torsion constant , and warping constant increase. In
addition, the resistance of the section to the local buckling increases due to adopting
stiffeners.
Moreover, Figure 14 shows that the distortional buckling stress of stiffened C
section column is higher than that in C section, but that local and flexural-torsional
buckling of these sections are nearly identical. Analyzing the curves of Figure 15, it
is clear that the buckling stress of stiffened C section beam is higher than that in C
section in all buckling modes.
Furthermore, for stiffened channel section columns in Figure 14 the distortional
buckling is never critical, however, in the case of stiffened channel section beams in
Figure 15 the minimum local and distortional buckling stresses are very close to
each other and both of them may be critical.

5. Conclusion
The semi analytical complex finite strip method has been used to study the
distortional buckling of stiffened cold-formed channel section columns and beams.
The critical stresses can be evaluated by solving eigenvalue problem for each half-
wavelength. The results show that the critical stresses obtained from the semi
analytical complex FSM are in good agreement with those obtained from
Generalized Beam Theory. The elastic local, flexural-torsional, and lateral-torsional
buckling modes of stiffened cold formed channel sections have also been considered
in addition to distortional buckling. The effect of extra longitudinal flange stiffener

14
on distortional buckling behavior of channel section columns and beams was
examined. It was concluded that that the maximum distortional critical stress in
stiffened C sections occurrs in a specific ratio of width of the extra stiffener to
the flange width . The method was used to investigate the optimum position of
longitudinal web stiffener in cold-formed E section columns for local and
distortional buckling modes. Moreover, a comparison has been made between the
buckling behavior of unstiffened and stiffened channel sections in two cases
including column and beam.

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