Stability of steel

framed structures
Ir. Prof. Dr. Jeffrey Chiang FIEM, PEng
Reference to IStructE.UK
• Stability of buildings Parts 1 and 2: General
philosophy and framed bracing, May 2014.
Under Part 1 General Philosophy on Stability
Illustration
• Notice the concept
of stability with
the resultant force
being directed
within a stable
rigid body – very
similar to the
design of a
retaining wall
with adequate
base.
Types of instability in
buildings
• Look at top (LHS) – clockwise:
• Overturning
• Racking
• Twisting (torsional)
• Sliding
Loading or actions to consider for design of
buildings
• For structural steel building, the loadings applied are the first consideration at
the design and planning stage.
• Students and practicing engineers have to remember this as the first step to take
before going in to perform analysis and design work.
• No doubt, structural steel components (esp in using hollow sections and thin
elements) have the advantage of lower self-weight compared to reinforced
concrete elements design.
• Let us take a look at the typical loadings or actions acting on a building.
Reference from:
Meaning of braced vertical stability system
Meaning of unbraced vertical stability system
Bracings in one or two
directions
Introduction to framed bracing for stability in steel
structures
• Framed bracing or simply bracing is often the most material-efficient method of
providing lateral stability in a framed structure.
• It is one of two common braced systems that is widely used to achieve both
permanent and temporary stability (the other being the use of shear walls).
• Similar to a truss, bracing refers to diagonal elements that triangulate a frame
(see Figure in next slide) – which achieves a geometrically stable form.
• The triangulated form has component elements working predominantly or
purely in tension and compression – without flexural effects.
• The result is a system with high major axis (in-plane) shear and flexural stiffness.
Braced column set
• The bracing put in place is
essentially to stabilize the column
from swaying sideways in-plane due
to horizontal or lateral loads.
• The diagonal bracing member forms
a triangulation within the
rectangular space formed by the two
beams and the two columns.
• A triangle is a stable arrangement
commonly used in many structural
forms, most common is to build a
tent or a teepee.
Structural form
Importance of stiffness of structural members
Force / Load transfer
Localised actions
Structural forms with various stability features
• Megabracing
• Diagrids and gridshells
• Space frames
Megabracing methods for stability in structures
Diagrid framing in structures
Unique space frames in large buildings