The Lateral-Torsional Buckling of Unrestrained Steel Beams in Fire

International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics
Vol. 15, No. 6 (2014) 1450088 (17 pages)

#.c World Scientic Publishing Company
DOI: 10.1142/S0219455414500886
Thermal Buckling Analysis of Axially Loaded Columns

of Thin-Walled Open Section with Nonuniform
Sectional Properties
by UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA @ DAVIS on 02/07/15. For personal use only.
Shanshan Cheng*, Qi-Wu Yan,, Long-Yuan Li* and Boksun Kim*

Int. J. Str. Stab. Dyn. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com
*Schoolof Marine Science and Engineering

University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK
School of Civil Engineering
Central South University, Changsha, P. R. China

qiwuyan196@gmail.com
Received 15 June 2014

Accepted 10 October 2014
Published 20 November 2014
This paper presents an analytical study on the thermal buckling analysis of axially loaded
columns of thin-walled open section with nonuniform sectional properties. Obtained herein are
critical loads related to exural, torsional and exural-torsional buckling of an I-section column
subjected to an axial compressive load applied at the geometric centroid, and under linearly
varied non-uniform temperature distribution scenarios. The analysis is accomplished using tra-
ditional energy methods. The inuences of thermal strain, nonuniform distribution of pre-
buckling stresses, and variation of pre-buckling stresses along the longitudinal axis of the column
on critical buckling loads are examined. The present results highlight the importance of non-
uniform sectional properties in the buckling analysis of columns of doubly symmetric section.
Keywords: Thin-walled; exural; torsional; buckling; nonuniform; temperature; column.
1. Introduction
It is well known that any axially loaded members of doubly symmetric section may
have three distinct buckling modes, namely exural, torsional and exural-torsional
modes, among which the exural buckling load about the weak axis is almost always
the lowest. Hence, in the design of doubly symmetric sections the torsional buckling
load is usually disregarded. In nonsymmetric sections, however, buckling will be al-
ways in the exural-torsional mode regardless of its shape and dimensions. Thin-
walled open monosymmetric sections, such as angles and channels, can buckle in
the exural and exural-torsional modes. Which of these two modes is critical depends
on the shape and dimensions of the cross section. Hence, exural-torsional buckling
must be considered in their design. This is normally done by calculating an equivalent
slenderness ratio and using the same column strength curve as for exural buckling.
1450088-1
S. Cheng et al.
Note that the denition of \symmetry" used above to characterize the buckling
behavior of a member cannot be based purely on the geometry of the section but also
need consider the mechanical properties of the section. For example, an I-section
made of composite materials is doubly symmetric in terms of its geometry but may
not be doubly symmetric in terms of its mechanical properties.14 Another example is
when a doubly symmetric section is exposed to a re on its one side, which causes a
nonuniform distribution of temperature in the cross section.5,6 The nonuniform
temperature leads to a nonuniform mechanical property, which can turn the column
from a exural buckling to a exural-torsional buckling. An excellent work was
provided by Pi and Bradford in describing the lateral-torsional buckling of I-section
beams subjected to transverse loading under nonuniform temperature distribution.6

The theory of torsional and exural-torsional buckling of thin-walled open section
members subjected to axial compressive loads can be found from literature of text-
books and research papers.79 Apart from the theoretical study of torsional and
exural-torsional buckling, pre-buckling10 and post-buckling11 of thin-walled open
section members subjected to axial compressive loads were also discussed. The work
involves the use of not only analytical methods9 but also nite element methods.12,13
However, despite the considerable amount of work published in literature, there is
very little work on the inuence of nonuniform mechanical properties on the torsional
and exural-torsional buckling of thin-walled open sections subjected to axial com-
pressive loads. It is expected that if the mechanical property is not uniform in the
cross section of a member, the bending center of the member will not be at the
geometric centroid of the section. In this case, compressive loads applied at geometric
centroid may cause the member to bend. The combined action of the compression
and bending can lead the member to have a torsional or a exural-torsional buckling.
In this paper, an analytical study on the buckling analysis of axially loaded columns
of thin-walled open section with nonuniform sectional properties is reported.
Obtained herein are critical loads related to exural, torsional and exural-torsional
buckling of an I-section column subjected to an axial compressive load applied at the
geometric centroid, and under linearly varied non-uniform temperature distribution
scenarios. The analysis is accomplished using traditional energy methods. The
nonuniform mechanical properties are assumed to be induced by the nonuniform
temperature distribution in the section. The inuences of thermal strain, nonuniform
distribution of pre-buckling stresses, and variation of pre-buckling stresses along the
longitudinal axis of the column on critical buckling loads are examined. The present
results highlight the importance of nonuniform sectional properties in the buckling
analysis of columns.
2. Pre-Buckling Analysis
Consider an I-section column subjected to an axial compressive load as shown in
Fig. 1. Let bf and tf be the width and thickness of the ange, hw and tw be the depth
and thickness of the web, respectively. Under a uniform temperature, the Young's
1450088-2
(a) (b) (c)
Fig. 1. (a) Column with axial compression. (b) Deformed shape. (c) Denition of internal forces.
modulus of the column is also uniform although its value may be dependent on the
temperature. In this case, the pre-buckling stress of the column can be obtained using
the traditional theory of axially loaded members. However, if the temperature in its
cross section is not uniformly distributed, the Young's modulus of the column will be
dierent at dierent points on the cross section. In this case not only can the axial
compressive load applied at geometric centroid cause the compression of the column
but also it can lead to the bending of the column about its geometric principal axes.
Let o be the geometric centroid of the I-section, oy and oz be the two corre-
sponding geometric principal axes (see Fig. 2). Since for most cases the temperature
distribution on the cross section is symmetric about the web, for example when a
protected I-section column is exposed to a re on its one side, it is assumed here that
the temperature varies only with the y-axis. Let T2 and T1 be the temperatures of
upper and lower anges, and E2 and E1 be the corresponding Young's moduli of
them (see Fig. 2). By using EulerBernoulli beam's assumption, the axial strain at
any coordinate point (y; z) of the cross section can be expressed as the sum of a
membrane strain and a bending strain about z-axis as follows,
"y; z "o yxy ; 1
where "o is the membrane strain and xy is the curvature of the column in the xy-
plane (see Fig. 2). On the other hand, the total axial strain can also be decomposed in
terms of the strain components generated by individual actions,

"y; z "th ; 2
E
where is the axial stress, E is the temperature-dependent Young's modulus, and "th
is the thermal strain. Solve from Eqs. (1) and (2), yielding,
E"o yxy "th : 3
1450088-3
S. Cheng et al.
Fig. 2. (a) Cross section. (b) Temperature distribution. (c) Young's modulus distribution. (d) Coordinate
system. (e) Strain distribution. (f) Membrane strain. (g) Bending strain.
The resultant force and moment on the cross section requires the following equilib-
rium equations,
Z Z
Nx dA E"o yxy "th dA
A
Z A
Z Z
"o EdA xy yEdA E"th dA; 4
A A A
Z Z
Mz ydA yE"o yxy "th dA
A
Z A
Z Z
"o yEdA xy y 2 EdA yE"th dA Nx v; 5
A A A
where Nx is the axial membrane force, Mz is the bending moment about z-axis, and v
is the transverse deection of the column in y-direction. Let,
Z
Aw
So EdA E1 E2 Af ; 6
2
Z
A

hAf hw Aw
S1 yEdA E2 E1 ; 7
A 2 12
1450088-4
Z " 2
! #
h2 t f h 2w Aw
S2 y 2 EdA E1 E2 Af ; 8
A 4 12 24
Z
STo E"th dA Af E1 T1 To E2 T2 To
A
Aw
E1 E2 T1 T2 3To E1 T1 E2 T2 ; 9
6
Z
Af h
ST 1 yE"th dA T2 To E2 T1 To E1
A 2
Aw hw
E2 T2 To E1 T1 To ; 10
12
where Af tf bf and Aw tw hw are the cross-sectional areas of the ange and web,
h hw tf is the distance between the midlines of upper and lower anges, is the
thermal expansion coecient, To is the ambient temperature. The above cross sec-
tion integrations are accomplished under the assumptions that the anges have
constant temperatures and the web has a linearly varied temperature from T1 to T2
and a linearly varied Young's modulus from E1 to E2 , respectively (see Fig. 2). By
using the notations dened in Eqs. (6)(10), Eqs. (4) and (5) can be expressed as
follows,
So "o S1 xy Nx STo ; 11
S1 "o S2 xy Nx v ST 1 : 12

By eliminating "o from Eqs. (11) and (12) and noting that xy d 2v
dx 2 , one obtains

S 12 d 2 v S
S2 2
Nx v 1 Nx STo ST 1 : 13
So dx So
The transverse deection of the column for simply supported ends governed by
Eq. (13) can be expressed as

S S S1 STo P 1 cos kL
vx o T 1 sin kx cos kx 1 ; 14
So P sin kL
where L is the column length, P Nx is the axial compressive load, and k is dened
as
s
So P
k : 15
So S2 S 12
The maximum deection occurs at x L=2 and is given by

S S S1 STo P kL
vjxL=2 o T 1 sec 1 : 16
So P 2
1450088-5
S. Cheng et al.
It is apparent from Eq. (16) that, when kL ! , vx at x L=2 tends 1. This

indicates that the maximum axial compressive load of the column is given by
2 So S2 S 12
Pmax : 17
So L 2
Clearly, Pmax is also the critical load of the column for the buckling about z-axis. It is
obvious that if the temperature is uniform, then S1 0 and Pmax reduces to the Euler
critical buckling load.
The curvature and the membrane strain can be calculated using Eqs. (14) and
(11) as follows:

d 2 v S1 STo P So ST 1 1 cos kL
xy 2 sin kx cos kx ; 18
dx So S2 S 12 sin kL

du STo P S 12 STo P So S1 ST 1 1 cos kL
"o sin kx cos kx : 19
dx So S o2 S2 So S 12 sin kL
The pre-buckling stress distribution in anges and web can be determined using
Eq. (3) as follows:
At the lower ange:

STo P
1 E 1 T1 To
So

S h S1 STo P So ST 1 1 coskL
E1 1 sinkx coskx : 20
So 2 So S2 S 12 sinkL
At the upper ange:

S P
2 E2 To T2 To
So

S1 h S1 STo P So ST 1 1 coskL
E2 sinkx coskx : 21
So 2 So S2 S 12 sinkL
In the web:

E1 E2 yE2 E1 STo P T T2 yT2 T1
3 1 To
2 hw So 2 hw

E1 E2 yE2 E1 S1 S1 STo P So ST 1
y
2 hw So So S2 S 12

1 coskL
sinkx coskx : 22
sinkL
Note that the membrane strain and curvature are expressed as functions of x-coor-
dinate because of the beam-column eect. Therefore the pre-buckling stress varies
not only with y- but also with x-coordinates. However, it can be seen from Eqs. (20)
(22) that, for a given cross section, the pre-buckling stress is constant in each of the
1450088-6
two anges, whereas it varies parabolically in the web. The variation of pre-buckling
stresses along x-axis is largely dependent on the value of k, which can be expressed as
q
k L PPmax . If k ! 0, then 1coskL
sinkL sinkx coskx ! 1. This indicates that, if P
is much smaller than Pmax , then the variation of pre-buckling stresses with x-axis can
be ignored. However, if P is close to Pmax , the variation of pre-buckling stresses with
x-axis becomes innite.
3. Torsional and Flexural-Torsional Buckling Analysis

The aforementioned buckling is presented under the assumption that the column will
buckle in the plane of principal axis without accompanying rotation of the cross
section. This assumption appears reasonable for the doubly symmetric cross section
but becomes doubtful if cross sections have only one axis of symmetry or none at all.
Geometrically, I-section columns are doubly symmetric about the two principal axes.
However, when the temperature is not uniformly distributed in their cross sections
their mechanical properties are not symmetric. Experience has revealed that columns
having open section with only one or no axis of symmetry show a tendency to bend
and twist simultaneously under axial compression.13 The ominous nature of this
type of failure lies in the fact that the actual critical load of such columns may be less
than that predicted by the buckling load shown in the above section due to their
small torsional rigidities.
Since the I-section discussed here is symmetric about y-axis, but not about z-axis
because of the temperature variation along the y-axis. For the convenience of anal-
ysis, two parallel reference axes are used. One is the z-axis of passing through geo-
metric centroid o and the other is the zs -axis of passing through shear center s (see
Fig. 3). Let ys be the distance between the centroid and shear center, which can be
expressed as follows,
hE1 E2
ys : 23
2E2 E1
Fig. 3. Denition of displacements in exural-torsional buckling (points o and s represent the geometric
centroid and shear center of the cross section).
1450088-7
S. Cheng et al.
When the column has a torsional or a exural-torsional buckling, the strain energy
stored in the column in the adjacent equilibrium conguration can be calculated
based on the sum of strain energies of the upper ange, lower ange and web.
According to the displacement components dened for a buckled column as shown in
Fig. 3, the following strain energy expressions can be obtained:
For the lower ange

Z " 2 #2 Z
E1 Iy1 L d 2 ws h d G1 J1 L d 2
U1 y s dx dx: 24
2 o dx 2 2 dx 2 2 o dx
For the upper ange

Z " 2 #2 Z
E2 Iy2 L d 2 ws d G2 J2 L d 2
h
U2 ys dx dx: 25
2 o dx 2 2 dx 2 2 o dx
For the web

Z !2
E1 E2 Iy3 L
d 2 ws d 2
U3 ys yws 2 dx
4 dx 2o dx
Z L 2
G G2 J3 d
1 dx; 26
4 o dx
where ws is the lateral translation displacement of the section, the angle of twist of
b 3f tf
the section about the shear center, Iy1 Iy2 12 the second moment of area of the
t 3w hw
ange about y-axis, Iy3 the second moment of area of the web about y-axis,
12
t 3f bf 3
J1 J2 3 the torsional constant of the ange, J3 t w3hw the torsional constant of
the web, G1 21
E1
and G2 21
E2
are the shear moduli of the lower and upper
anges; respectively, yws the distance between the centroid and shear center of the
web element, which can be expressed as
hw E1 E2
yws : 27
6E2 E1
There is no warping strain energy in the strain energy expression of each component.
This is because the anges and web are treated independently here and each has a
rectangular cross section for which the warping constant is very small and can be
ignored. However, this does not mean that there is no warping for the whole section.
The warping strain energy of the section is represented by the bending strain energy
related to the angle-of-twist terms in the strain energy expression of each component.
This is a novelty and it avoids the diculty in dealing with the warping of the
I-section when the mechanical properties are not uniform in the section.
The loss of potential energy of external loads during buckling is equal to the
product of the loads and the distances they travel as the column takes an adjacent
equilibrium position, which are expressed as follows9,14,15:
1450088-8
For the lower ange

Z 2 2
1 L dws h d 2 d
W1 b t ys rf dx: 28
2 o 1 f f dx 2 dx dx
For the upper ange
Z 2 2
1 L dws h d d
W2 2 bf tf ys r 2f dx: 29
2 o dx 2 dx dx
For the web
Z LZ hw =2 2
1 dws d
W3 3 tw ys y dxdy; 30
2 o hw =2 dx dx
q
b 2f t 2f
where rf 12 3 is the polar radius of gyration of the ange section with respect to
its own centroid. The variation of the pre-buckling stresses can have signicant eect on
the buckling behavior1620 and thus it is important to split the section into components
for which the potential energy of pre-buckling stresses can be calculated directly.
For the column with simply supported ends, the torsional and/or exural-tor-
sional buckling displacements ws x and x, that satisfy the simply supported
boundary conditions at x 0 and x L, can be assumed to be
C1 ys C2 L x
ws x sin ; 31
L
C L x
x 2 sin ; 32
L
where C1 and C2 are constants to be determined. Equations (31) and (32) are
substituted into Eqs. (24)(26) to furnish

E1 Iy1 L hC2 2 2 G1 J1 L 2
U1 C1 C2; 33
4 2 L 4

E2 Iy2 L hC2 2 2 G2 J2 L 2
U2 C1 C2; 34
4 2 L 4
E1 E2 Iy3 L 2 G G J L
U3 C1 yws C2 2 1 2 3
C 22 : 35
8 L 8
Equations (20)(22), (30) and (31) are substituted into (27)(29) to furnish

bf tf LE1 STo P hC2 2 bf tf LE1
W1 T1 To C1 rfC2
2 2
4 So 2 2
2
S1 h S1 STo P So ST 1 hC2
C1 r 2f C 22
So 2 So S2 S 12 2

4 2 2
tan ; 36
4 2 2
1450088-9
S. Cheng et al.

bf tf LE2 STo P hC2 2 bf tf LE2
W2 T2 To C1 r 2f C 22
4 So 2 2
2
S1 h S1 STo P So ST 1 hC2
C1 r 2f C 22
So 2 So S2 S 12 2

4 2 2
tan ; 37
4 2 2

hw tw L STo P T T2 E1 E2 h2
W3 1 To C 12 w C 22
4 So 2 2 12

h E E1 h t L E1 E2 C1 C2 hw
w 2 C1 C2 w w T2 T1
6 4 12
2
E E1 C 1 C2 hw 2 h t L S1 STo P So ST 1
2 w w
4 3 20 2 So S2 S 12

S1 E1 E2 h 2w 2 E2 E1
C1
2
C C1 C2 hw
So 2 12 2 6
2
E1 E2 C1 C2 hw E2 E1 C 1 C2 hw 2
hw
12 4 3 20

4 2 2
tan ; 38
4 2 2
p
where P =Pmax is the dimensionless load. From the principle of minimum
potential energy, when the torsional or exural-torsional buckling occurs, the fol-
lowing equation holds,
!2
@ 2 @ 2 @ 2
F P 0; 39
@C 12 @C 22 @C1 @C2
where U1 U2 U3 W1 W2 W3 . The substitution of Eqs. (33)(38)

into Eq. (39) yields
F P A11 B11 A22 B22 A12 B12 2 0 40
in which

@ 2 U1 @ 2 U2 @ 2 U3 L 2 E1 E2 Iy3
A11 E1 Iy1 E2 Iy2 ;
@C 12 @C 12 @C 12 2 L 2
@ 2 W1 @ 2 W2 @ 2 W3
B11
@C 12 @C 2 @C 2
1 1
bf tf L STo P
E1 E2 T1 To E1 T2 To E2
2 S
o
h t L STo P
w w E1 E2
4 So
1450088-10

2T1 T2 3T0 E1 T1 2T2 3T0 E2

3

bf tf L S1 STo P So ST 1 4 2 2
tan
So S2 S 12 4 2 2

S h S h h t L S1 STo P So ST 1
E1 1 E2 1 w w
So 2 So 2 2 So S2 S 12

4 2 2 S1 E2 E1
tan E E h ;
4 2 2 So 1 2 w
6
@ 2 U1 @ 2 U2 @ 2 U3
A12
@C1 @C2 @C1 @C2 @C1 @C2
L 2
E2 Iy2 E1 Iy1 h E1 E2 Iy3 yws ;

4 L
@ 2 W1 @ 2 W2 @ 2 W3
B12
@C1 @C2 @C1 @C2 @C1 @C2

bf tf Lh STo P
E2 E1 T2 T0 E2 T1 T0 E1
4 So

h2 t L STo P E2 E1 T2 T0 E2 T1 T0 E1
w w
4 So 6 6

bf tf Lh S1 STo P So ST 1 4 2 2
tan
2 So S2 S 12 4 2 2

S h S h h 2 t L S1 STo P So ST 1
E2 1 E1 1 w w
So 2 So 2 2 So S2 S 12

4 2 2 S1 E2 E1 E1 E2
tan hw ;
4 2 2 So 6 12
@ 2 U1 @ 2 U 2 @ 2 U3
A22
@C 22 @C 22 @C 22
L 2
E1 Iy1 E2 Iy1 h 2 2E1 E2 Iy3 y 2ws
8 L
L
2G1 J1 G2 J2 G1 G2 J3 ;
4
@ 2 W1 @ 2 W2 @ 2 W3
B22
@C 22 @C 22 @C 22
2
bf tf L h STo P
r 2f E1 E2 T1 To E1 T2 To E2
2 4 So

h 3w tw L STo P E1 E2

4 So 12
1450088-11
S. Cheng et al.

4T1 T2 5T0 E1 T1 4T2 5T0 E2

60
2
bf tf L S1 STo P So ST 1 4 2 2 h
tan rf
2
So S2 S 12 4 2 2 4

S1 h S1 h h 3w tw L S1 STo P So ST 1
E1 E2
So 2 So 2 2 So S2 S 12

4 2 2 S1 E1 E2 E2 E1
tan h w :
4 2 2 So 12 40
Equation (40) is a nonlinear algebraic equation about the axial compressive load P .
For a given column with given distributions of temperature and mechanical prop-
erties, one can nd the roots, P , of Eq. (40). The lowest root represents the critical
buckling load.
It should be pointed out here that, due to the bending eect involved in the pre-
buckling analysis, the term related to the loss of potential energy of external loads is
not linearly proportional to the axial compressive load P . Thus, the classical method
of buckling analysis which is to nd the smallest eigenvalue in the eigen-equation
cannot be used directly here.
4. Numerical Examples
A commercially available I-section column with section dimensions, hw 138:8 mm,
bf 152:2 mm, tf 6:8 mm, tw 5:8 mm, is considered herein for numerical illus-
tration. The reduction of Young's modulus due to elevated temperatures is given in
Table 1, which is obtained from steel design manual. Four dierent temperature
distributions dened in Table 2 are discussed in this numerical example. The thermal
expansion coecient and ambient temperature are taken as 1:4 10 5 and
To 20 C in all cases.
Table 1. Reduction of Young's modulus at dierent temperatures.
T ( C) 20 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
E (GPa) 210 210 210 168 147 126 65.1 27.3 18.9
Table 2. Parametric values employed in dierent cases.
Case T1 ( C) T2 ( C) E1 (GPa) E2 (GPa)

1 200 300 210 168
2 200 400 210 147
3 200 500 210 126
4 200 600 210 65.1
1450088-12
(a) (b)
(c) (d)
Fig. 4. Axial stress distribution on the end section of column (section dimensions: hw 138:8 mm,
bf 152:2 mm, tf 6:8 mm, tw 5:8 mm, L 3000 mm). (a) Case 1. (b) Case 2. (c) Case 3. (d) Case 4.
Figure 4 shows the pre-buckling stress distributions on the end cross section of the
column in four dierent temperature distribution cases, in which the axial com-
pressive load is taken as P y 2Af Aw where y 275 MPa is the yield strength
of steel. It can be seen from the gure that the stresses in the two anges are very
close although they have dierent temperatures. The variation of stresses in the web
depends on the temperature dierence between T2 and T1 . The larger dierence
between T2 and T1 leads to a larger variation in web stress. The highest stress is
found at near the geometric center of the web element. Figure 5 shows the pre-
buckling stress distributions on the middle cross section of the column in four dif-
ferent temperature distribution cases. Owing to the bending eect, the stress
distributions in the middle section of the column are quite dierent from those in the
end section of the column. In the former the stress is approximately symmetric about
1450088-13
S. Cheng et al.
(a) (b)
(c) (d)
Fig. 5. Axial stress distribution on the middle section of column (section dimensions: hw 138:8 mm,
bf 152:2 mm, tf 6:8 mm, tw 5:8 mm, L 3000 mm). (a) Case 1. (b) Case 2. (c) Case 3. (d) Case 4.
z-axis, indicating that the column is nearly in a pure compression; while in the latter
the stress in the ange of low temperature is much greater than that in the ange of
high temperature, indicating that the column is subjected to not only compression
but also bending.
Under uniform temperature, an I-section column will always buckle in a exural
mode. Whether the exural mode is bending about y-axis or z-axis depends on which
exural rigidity is weaker. When the temperature is nonuniform, however, the
I-section column will buckle in the exural-torsional mode owing to the nonuniform
mechanical properties induced by the nonuniform temperature. To demonstrate this,
Fig. 6 shows the critical loads of the column in four dierent temperature distribu-
tion cases, in which Pmax and Pmin represent the critical loads of the exural buckling
about z-axis dened by Eq. (17) and y-axis dened by Eq. (41), Pcr1 and Pcr2
1450088-14
1 1
Normalised critical load, P/P maxo
0.8 0.8
0.6 0.6
0.4 0.4
0.2 0.2
0 0
4 6 8 10 12 4 6 8 10 12
(a) (b)
1 1
Pmax
Normalised critical load, P/P maxo
0.8 0.8 Pmin

Pcr1
0.6 0.6 Pcr2
0.4 0.4
0.2 0.2
0 0
4 6 8 10 12 4 6 8 10 12
Column length, m Column length, m
(c) (d)
Fig. 6. Variation of critical load with column length (section dimensions: hw 138:8 mm, bf 152:2 mm,
tf 6:8 mm, tw 5:8 mm). (a) Case 1. (b) Case 2. (c) Case 3. (d) Case 4.
represent the critical loads of the exural-torsional buckling calculated from Eq. (40)
with and without taking into account the bending eect in pre-buckling stress (i.e.
for Pcr2 the pre-buckling stress is taken at the end section of the column and its
variation with x-axis is ignored),

2 E1 E2 Iy3
Pmin 2 E1 Iy1 E2 Iy1 : 41
L 2
For convenience, all these four critical loads are normalized using Pmax o , which is the
value of Pmax at ambient temperature, i.e. when T2 T1 20 C. It can be seen from
Fig. 6 that, among the three critical loads, Pcr1 is always smallest. This demonstrates
that when there is a temperature dierence between the two anges, the column will
buckle in the exural-torsional mode. It is worth noting that if the bending eect is
1450088-15
S. Cheng et al.
ignored in the calculation of pre-buckling stresses, the critical load of exural-

torsional buckling coincides with that of exural buckling about the y-axis unless
there is a huge temperature dierence between the two anges. This highlights the
importance of considering bending eect in pre-buckling analysis.
5. Conclusions
This paper has presented an analytical study on the buckling analysis of axially
loaded columns of thin-walled open section with nonuniform sectional properties.
Critical loads related to exural, torsional and exural-torsional buckling of I-section
columns subjected to axial compressive loads applied at geometric centroid, and
under linearly varied non-uniform temperature distribution scenarios have been

derived. The inuences of thermal strain, nonuniform distribution of pre-buckling
stresses, and variation of pre-buckling stresses along the longitudinal axis of the
column on critical buckling loads have been discussed using numerical examples.
From the obtained results the following conclusions can be drawn:
. Nonuniform distribution of temperature can lead to nonuniform distribution of

mechanical properties. The nonuniform of both the temperature and mechanical
properties can signicantly aect the pre-buckling stress in axially loaded columns.
. When the bending eect is taken into account in the pre-buckling stress analysis,
the buckling analysis becomes a nonlinear problem, which cannot be treated
using the classical eigenvalue analysis method.
. The doubly symmetric I-section column subjected to an axial compressive load
applied at its geometric centroid will buckle in the exural-torsional mode when
the temperature distribution is not uniform. The critical load of the exural-
torsional buckling is smaller than the critical load of the exural buckling about
either principal axis.
. The pre-buckling bending has signicant inuence not only on the value of the
critical load but also on the mode of exural-torsional buckling.
. Although the present study focuses on the exural, torsional, and exural-tor-
sional buckling of columns caused due to a linearly varied non-uniform tempera-
ture along the axis parallel to Web line, the concept and the method itself can be
applied to the general columns with nonuniform mechanical properties when
subjected to axial compression.
Finally, it should be pointed out that the study presented in the paper deals with
only the elastic buckling and there is no material yield. For some cases, however,
material yield may occur prior to the buckling because of the eect of high temperature.
In this case, a full nonlinear analysis is needed in order to calculate the failure load.
Acknowledgment
The rst author wishes to acknowledge the nancial support received from the Chinese
Scholarship Council for her Ph.D. study being carried out at Plymouth University.
1450088-16
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1450088-17

The Lateral-Torsional Buckling of Unrestrained Steel Beams in Fire

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The Lateral-Torsional Buckling of Unrestrained Steel Beams in Fire

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International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics

Vol. 15, No. 6 (2014) 1450088 (17 pages)

Thermal Buckling Analysis of Axially Loaded Columns

Shanshan Cheng*, Qi-Wu Yan,, Long-Yuan Li* and Boksun Kim*

*Schoolof Marine Science and Engineering

Central South University, Changsha, P. R. China

Received 15 June 2014

Keywords: Thin-walled; exural; torsional; buckling; nonuniform; temperature; column.

beams subjected to transverse loading under nonuniform temperature distribution.6

(a) (b) (c)

S1 "o S2 xy Nx v ST 1 : 12

The maximum deection occurs at x L=2 and is given by

It is apparent from Eq. (16) that, when kL ! , vx at x L=2 tends 1. This

3. Torsional and Flexural-Torsional Buckling Analysis

For the lower ange

For the upper ange

For the web

For the lower ange

where U1 U2 U3 W1 W2 W3 . The substitution of Eqs. (33)(38)

E2 Iy2 E1 Iy1 h E1 E2 Iy3 yws ;

Table 1. Reduction of Young's modulus at dierent temperatures.

T ( C) 20 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800

Table 2. Parametric values employed in dierent cases.

Case T1 ( C) T2 ( C) E1 (GPa) E2 (GPa)

0.8 0.8 Pmin

0.6 0.6 Pcr2

ignored in the calculation of pre-buckling stresses, the critical load of exural-

under linearly varied non-uniform temperature distribution scenarios have been

. Nonuniform distribution of temperature can lead to nonuniform distribution of

Sci. Manuf. 37 (2006) 972980.

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Shanshan Cheng, Qi-Wu Yan,, Long-Yuan Li and Boksun Kim*