Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

www.elsevier.com/locate/tws

Local buckling curves for the design of FRP

profiles
Marisa Pecce a, Edoardo Cosenza b,*

a
University of Sannio, Piazza Roma, 82100 Benevento, Italy
b
Dipartimento di Analisi e Progettazione Strutturale, University of Naples Federico II Via Claudio 21,
80125 Naples, Italy

Received 21 January 2000; accepted 20 April 2000

Abstract

Local buckling in FRP profiles is analyzed. Some experimental results in compression and
bending, where local buckling of the flanges in compression occurred, are described and the
critical stresses are summarized. A numerical model by the finite element method (FEM) is
introduced and validated by comparison of the numerical results with the experimental ones.
This finite element model is applied for a wide parametric analysis in order to individuate a
buckling curve for the local buckling of the flange. An analytical expression of the buckling
curve is developed, taking into consideration the orthotropy of the material, in which the
restraint action of the web on the flange is explicitly introduced as a function of the geometrical
and mechanical data of the section sub-components. The reliability of the proposed curve as
a design tool is confirmed by comparison with the experimental results.  2000 Elsevier
Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Pultruded profiles; Composite materials; Local buckling; Critical stress; Design curve; Finite
element analysis

1. Introduction

Composite materials have a high trend of diffusion in civil engineering since they
offer various types of product and material characteristics. Using different types and
quantities of fibers coupled with various resins for the matrix, it is possible to obtain
particular performances suitable for specifics design requirements.

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +39-081-7683489; fax +39-081-7683491.

E-mail address: cosenza@unina.it (E. Cosenza).

0263-8231/00/$ - see front matter  2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 2 6 3 - 8 2 3 1 ( 0 0 ) 0 0 0 2 3 - 9
208 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Nomenclature
b width of the section
bs half-width of the section
Ey transversal Young’s modulus
Ex longitudinal Young’s modulus
Efy longitudinal Young’s modulus of the flange
Ewy longitudinal Young’s modulus of the web
Efx transversal Young’s modulus of the flange
Ewx transversal Young’s modulus of the web
G shear modulus
h height of the section
L length of the section
r shape factor
tf thickness of the flange
tw thickness of the web
a restraint factor
b material factor
l nondimensional slenderness of the flange
nxy longitudinal Poisson ratio
nyx transversal Poisson ratio
scr critical stress
su ultimate stress

Therefore the necessity for design guidelines and code provisions is urgent, in
order to allow effective utilization of the products with the right degree of struc-
tural safety.
In particular, Fiber Reinforced Plastic (FRP) profiles obtained with the pultrusion
technique represent a product with interesting properties of durability and lightness,
but also economic if the glass fibers are used. On the other hand these benefits are
coupled with a structural behavior completely different from that of steel profiles
traditionally used in civil engineering, making the well-known design rules and mod-
els totally invalid for the FRP profiles.
Pultruded profiles are realized with most of the fibers oriented along the axial
direction of the element defining very different mechanical characteristics in the
longitudinal and transversal directions; the mechanical behavior is elastic up to fail-
ure. According to the fibers’ direction, the strength and elastic constants are much
higher than those in the orthogonal direction, where the resin characteristics govern
the problem; furthermore the ratios between the strength and the elastic moduli are
very much higher than in the case of steel. As a result, the strength is not usually
used, and failure conditions are attained for buckling phenomena; it is also clear that
the design rules for avoiding buckling phenomena cannot be the same as those of
 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 209

steel that usually occur in the plastic range, with the influence of mechanical and
geometric imperfections due to the steel working process.
Moreover, the orthotropic constitutive relationships of the material bring to the
forefront local buckling of the section components, flanges and web, where the bidi-
mensional behavior comes in.
Even though these mechanical characteristics of FRP profiles clearly point out
that specific design rules are needed, the standard shapes of the profile section are
actually very similar to steel ones, and the subject is still being investigated with
experimental and theoretical studies.
Global buckling in particular has been the subject of various works [1–3]; in [3]
many experimental results obtained in the last 30 years have been summarized and
discussed, as well as new experimental tests pointing out the meaningful aspects of
the problem. The tests have been developed in two steps. In the first one the elastic
constants of the profiles considered have been evaluated, and it is clear that: they
change with the profiles’ dimensions, the coefficient of variation of specimens from
the same section also reaches 15%, their average value is different between flanges
and web by up to 11%. The necessity of suitable experimental procedures, not only
on the material but also on the entire element, is clearly confirmed [4–6], but prob-
ably an even more detailed quality control of the producers is necessary.
In the second part the compression tests are presented and the experimental critical
loads are compared with the theoretical ones obtained by the authors’ model, taking
into account the shear strain, that could be important for FRP materials which have
a large ratio of the Young’s modulus to the shear one.
Another approach for evaluating the critical load has been introduced in [7]; based
on many experimental results and numerical simulations with a finite element model,
for cases where a local and/or global buckling mode occurred, a single expression
for developing the buckling curve is proposed in which a coefficient takes into
account the mode-interaction. Comparison with the experimental results considered
in the study proves that when the local mode governs the structural behavior, the
proposed curve is not always safe or is sometimes much too conservative.
The pure local buckling phenomenon has also been analyzed in many studies
considering the opportunity of simplified models or finite element methods (FEMs)
[8,9], for evaluating the critical load of elements in compression or in bending. The
most common simplified approach considers the flange as a plate elastically
restrained by the web, and various numerical and analytical procedures have been
proposed for the solution of the problem and the evaluation of the critical load.
However, each of the other restraining actions of the section components has not
been clearly defined, even if the geometrical parameters of the cross section which
govern the problem, have been individuated [10].
In this paper a wide numerical analysis by the FEM is used for developing a local
buckling curve of I-shaped profiles; the numerical method and the final curve
reliability is confirmed by comparison with the experimental results. The buckling
curve proposed is specific of local buckling and represents a key issue for the
designer and for the producers respectively in choosing or realizing the shape of the
210 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

section; furthermore, by coupling this curve with the global buckling curve, meaning-
ful problems of FRP profile design could be easily solved.

2. Experimental tests

Some experimental results of compression and bending tests during which local
buckling occurred, are described in the following sections. Two of the tests were
carried out by the authors and the description is more detailed, while the others,
carried out by other researchers, are described briefly and the details are available
in the papers mentioned for each one. The geometrical and mechanical data of the
specimens are summarized in Table 1 for all the tests considered; Table 1 also gives
the experimental values of the critical stress.

2.1. Tests carried out by the authors

Two tests were carried out, one in compression and the other in bending, using
pultruded profiles produced by MMGF (Morrison Molded Fiber Glass).
The profile’s cross section and specimen dimensions are shown in Fig. 1. The
elastic constants of the material have been experimentally measured during research
on this subject [5], pointing out the following results:

앫 the elastic moduli are about the same for the web and the flanges;
앫 the Young’s modulus along the fiber direction is about the same in tension and
compression
앫 the Young’s modulus in bending and in tension could be different according to
the deflection axes;
앫 the shear modulus of the entire profile is higher than that measured on the material.

Based on these observations, the elastic constants used in the numerical compari-
son discussed in the next section are Young’s moduli in tension, Poisson ratios and
the shear modulus of the material; the values are indicated in Table 1 according to
the following symbols:

앫 Young’s modulus and Poisson ratio parallel to the fibers: Ex and nxy;
앫 Young’s modulus and Poisson ratio perpendicular to the fibers: Ey and nyx;
앫 Shear modulus: G.

Three equal elements were tested in compression by a universal machine (Fig.

1a); therefore the profile was restrained at the ends by the plates of the machine.
The elongation was measured by inductive transducers and 25 strain gauges were
positioned on a web of one of the three specimens for measuring the strain variation
along the element.
The force–elongation curves are shown in Fig. 2, and give good agreement for
the three tests. However for the critical load evaluation a more reliable result was
Table 1
Data of experimental tests

Number of tests b=h (mm) tf=tw(mm) L (mm) Ex (GPa) Ey (GPa) G (GPa) nxy scr,exp (MPa)

Authors
1 (3 specimens) 203 9.5 500 22 7.5 2.4 0.3 67
2 (bending) 102 6.4 1400 22 7.5 2.4 0.3 145
Yooh et al., 1996 [11]
3 305 12.7 2743 16.5 9.6 4.50 0.32 46
4 203 12.7 1524 18.1 10.5 4.30 0.33 117
5 152 9.5 892 17.1 8.6 3.60 0.30 112
Barbero et al., 1994 [13]
6 203 9.5 520 29.5 14.1 4.5 0.35 78
7 203 9.5 770 29.5 14.1 4.5 0.35 72
8 203 9.5 1050 29.5 14.1 4.5 0.35 58
9 152 9.5 380 25.4 13.0 4.1 0.36 140
10 152 9.5 580 25.4 13.0 4.1 0.36 129
11 152 9.5 770 25.4 13.0 4.1 0.36 108
12 152 6.4 380 23.5 12.6 4.0 0.37 64
13 152 6.4 580 23.5 12.6 4.0 0.37 60
14 152 6.4 770 23.5 12.6 4.0 0.37 55
15 102 6.4 260 26.6 12.9 4.1 0.36 132
16 102 6.4 390 26.6 12.9 4.1 0.36 123
17 102 6.4 540 26.6 12.9 4.1 0.36 97
M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Bank et al., 1994 (bending) [14,15]

18 (4 specimens) 203 9.5 2740 21 8 2.5 0.3 82
19 (2 specimens) 203 12.7 2740 24.6 10.3 3.6 0.33 129
211
 212

Fig. 1. Data of the experimental tests. (a) Compression test, (b) bending test.
M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222
 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 213

Fig. 2. Force–elongation curves in the compression test.

obtained by the strain gauges measure; they indicated the beginning of the local
phenomenon earlier than the elongation, which is a global parameter. The average
result, considering the three specimens, was a critical stress of 67 MPa.
The bending test was carried out on a simple supported beam; the profile and the
loading pattern are shown in Fig. 1b. The load was applied at the middle height of
the web by a suitable steel frame with bars crossing the web. Wood stiffeners were
placed at the support sections to avoid local failures.
The deflection of the beam in the midspan was measured by inductive transducers
at three points of the cross section: in the middle point under the section and at the
two edges of the upper flange, where local buckling was expected. Also in this case,
strain gauges were attached to the flange in compression.
The force–deflections of the middle section are shown in Fig. 3; the three point
measures gave the same result up to local buckling occurring, causing a clear devi-
ation of the two flange edges.

Fig. 3. Force–displacement relations in the bending test.

214 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Fig. 4 also presents the results of four strain gauges where the same phenomenon
is pointed out; as for the compression test the critical load indicated by the strain
gauges is lower than that provided by the transducers. In particular the critical stress
was 145 MPa. Failure of the beam was attained by crushing the flange–web connec-
tion at a stress of 171 MPa, but local damage also occurred at the holes of the web
were the load was applied.
The critical stress, in both the cases and in all the tests introduced in the following
paragraphs, is evaluated considering the area of the cross section as composed of
three rectangular components, i.e. neglecting the real shape at the flange–web con-
nection.

2.2. Tests carried out by other authors

All the tests considered were carried out on wide flange profiles (the height h and
the width b are equal) with equal thickness for the web tw and the flanges tf; however
the dimensions and the elastic constants are different.
In particular two experimental programs in compression have been considered.
The first one, described in [11], involved three specimens in FRP E-glass/vinilestere
produced by MMFG. The geometrical and mechanical characteristics are reported
in Table 1 together with the experimental critical stress. This is evaluated from the
experimental critical load given by the authors based on the elongation–force
relationship.
The other experimental program on 12 specimens is presented in [12,13]; four
profile sections with three different lengths were tested. The profiles were in FRP
E-glass/vinilestere produced by Creative Pultrusion.
The data for the specimens are summarized in Table 1; in this case Young’s
moduli are different for the flange and the web, in Table 1 the values of the flange
characteristics (Ex is Efx and Ey is Efy) are reported while the web ones are about
Ewx =22 GPa and Ewy =12 GPa for all the cases. In these tests the critical load was
evaluated by the strain–force relation of the strain gauges attached to the specimen.
The results show a large influence of the specimen length if local buckling also

Fig. 4. Force–strain relations in the bending test.

 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 215

occurred; surely the cause is the effect of the edge restraints, in that when the length
increases the critical stress reduces due to the restraint degree reduction.
Also an experimental program in bending has been considered [14,15]. The load-
ing pattern is always a simple supported beam with a span length of 274 cm and
loaded by two forces applied at 61 cm with respect to the beam center.
In all the experimental tests, compression and bending, shown in Table 1, the
critical stress is much lower than the material strength (30–50%), pointing out the
design importance of the phenomenon and the necessity of suitable models.

3. Numerical model

It is well-known [7,11] that the FEM is a reliable tool for evaluating critical
behavior of FRP profiles. In the following, the FEM has been used for evaluating
the critical stresses of the experimental cases listed in the previous section, and
for developing a parametric analysis on I-shaped profiles in order to define a local
buckling curve.
The constitutive relationship of the material is assumed to be elastic up to failure,
and is characterized by 5 elastic constants: the longitudinal and transversal Young’s
moduli (parallel and perpendicular to the fibers), the two relative Poisson ratios, the
shear modulus.
The FEM is applied by the code LUSAS [16]. Two different types of finite
elements could be considered in the numerical analysis depending on whether or not
the shear strain was taken into account [8]; in the following the first option is adopted
with the element QTS4.
The thick QTS4 is a shell rectangular element with 4 nodes situated in the angles,
the d.o.f. are 5 for each node: the 3 orthogonal displacements along the 3 orthogonal
axes and the 2 orthogonal rotations. This is a hybrid element that prevents the shear
locking phenomenon when the thickness of the plate becomes too small [17].

3.1. Experimental–numerical comparison

For the tests in compression previously described, the FEM was applied after a
preliminary analysis of the mesh dimensions and the experimental restraints. The
first subject was dealt with by comparing the results of buckling loads of isotropic
plates restrained along three sides, with the theoretical well-known results.
The restraint of the compression tests in universal machines, when any restraint
system is introduced between the specimen edges and the machine plates, was dis-
cussed in [8] for the test carried out by the authors, and the double fixed pattern
was assumed. The same assumption is adopted for the tests of [11]. Conversely, for
the tests described in [12] the pinned condition is considered, as the author himself
suggested, even if the rotations at the edges are not completely allowed.
In Table 2 the experimental and numerical values of the critical stresses are
reported; the results of the comparison are proposed in terms of the ratio between the
experimental and numerical critical stresses scr,num/scr,exp. The maximum difference
216 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Table 2
Comparison to experimental tests

Number of tests scr,exp (MPa) scr,num (MPa) scr,num/scr,exp σcr,d (MPa) scr,d/scr,exp

Authors
1 (3 specimens) 67 62 0.93 41 0.61
2 (bending) 145 135 0.93 72 0.50
Yooh et al., 1996 [11]
3 46 49 1.06 38 0.83
4 117 126 1.08 94 0.81
5 112 103 0.92 79 0.70
Barbero et al., 1993 [13]
6 78 75 0.96 69 0.88
7 72 68 0.94 69 0.96
8 58 67 1.16 69 1.19
9 140 123 0.88 116 0.83
10 129 112 0.87 116 0.90
11 108 112 1.04 116 1.08
12 64 56 0.87 50 0.78
13 60 51 0.86 50 0.83
14 55 51 0.93 50 0.90
15 132 126 0.95 114 0.87
16 123 116 0.94 114 0.93
17 97 115 1.18 114 1.18
Bank et al., 1994 (bending) [14,15]
18 (4 specimens) 82 77 0.94 43 0.52
19 (2 specimens) 129 152 1.18 97 0.75

between the experimental and numerical results is in the range ±18%; the numerical
stress is higher than the experimental one only when the slenderness L/b is greater
than about 5, probably because the influence of geometrical imperfections increases
and global buckling interaction comes in.
In evaluating the model efficiency, the uncertainties of the elasticity moduli
between the components of the section, and also of the edge restraints, have to be
taken into account; moreover the experimental tests are influenced by imperfections
which are not included in the model. Therefore the numerical model provisions are
in good agreement with the experimental tests.

3.2. Parametric analysis

A wide parametric study, varying the dimensions of the section components, has
been done by the FEM previously introduced. The aim of the analysis is to define
a critical stress formulation in which the restraint degree of the web on the flange
buckling is explicitly expressed, as a function of the geometrical and mechanical
characteristics of the section components.
The numerical calculation has been carried out varying the meaningful material
characteristics and considering various dimensions of I-shaped sections.
 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 217

The analysis is focused to establish a lower bound of the critical load, therefore
only compression loading is considered and for the restraint at the edges of the
element the pin-ended condition is assumed. In fact, when local buckling occurs in
bending, the web is partially in tension so that its restraint degree on the flange in
compression is higher.
The variation of the geometrical dimensions has been performed assuming a con-
stant ratio L/bs between the length of the profile and the half-width of the flange; in
particular it was established L/bs=8, considering that higher values could mean a
negligible reduction of the critical load, i.e. the result could be represented by the
condition L/bs=⬁. However the analysis is also affected by the ratio L/h, h being the
height of the web; this ratio is variable because a single value of h=200 mm is
considered but L varies as a function of bs (L=8·bs), and the L/h ratio influences the
web restraint degree. The consequences of this effect are discussed after the presen-
tation of the results.
The most important point of the numerical tests is the identification of the mean-
ingful parameter that governs the restraint degree of the flange due to the web action;
this shape factor is the ratio between the slenderness of each section component
r⫽(bs/tf)/(h/tw) (1)

The variation of the section dimensions has been fixed considering the three web
thicknesses tw=20–12.5–10 mm, and for each one of these three values, bs has been
assumed 50–80–100 mm and the flange thickness tf was varied using six values of
r. The combination of the parameters gives 54 shapes of profiles with 13 slender-
ness bs/tf.
The reference material considered is one of the profiles tested by the authors
(Ex=22 GPa; Ey=7.5 GPa; G=2.4 GPa; nxy=0.1; nyx=0.3), that is characterized by the
ratios Ey/Ex⬇1/3, G/Ey⬇1/3. The parametric analysis has been developed varying
the Young’s modulus Ex in the range Ey/Ex=1/3–1, however the ratio G/Ey has always
been fixed equal to 1/3, which is also approximately valid for an isotropic material.
Furthermore, for Ey/Ex=1 the isotropic case is properly introduced with n=nxy. In
conclusion the results cover a large and realistic range of material characteristics.

4. Proposal for the design of a local buckling curve

The critical stresses resulting from the numerical analysis are drawn vs the flange
slenderness in Fig. 5, for three ratios Ey/Ex equal to 1/3–2/3–1, the last one being
the case for an isotropic material. It is clear that the ratio bs/tf is the most important
parameter, but the results are very scattered especially for low values of bs/tf. Parti-
cularly for very low bs/tf, the profile shape changes the local buckling mode from
flange to web buckling, therefore the critical stress appears quite independent from
the flange slenderness. When the flange is slender the restraint effect of the web is
about embedding and the critical stress depends only on the ratio bs/tf.
A first step to elaborate the numerical data is the adimensionalization of the critical
218 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Fig. 5. Critical stresses of the parametric analysis.

stress scr to the ultimate one su; in particular two values of the ultimate stress are
considered, 200 MPa and 300 MPa, which are comprehensive as regards the most
common effective values. The cases characterized by scr/su⬎1 are excluded; this
procedure assures that the results considered correspond to GFRP profiles really
available.
The expression of the non-dimensional critical stress for flange local buckling
assumed in the present analysis is:
scr Ex 1
⫽a·b·p2· · (2)
su su·12·(1−nxynyx) (bs/tf)2
where a is a factor for introducing the restraint along the web–flange joint side, and
b is a factor for taking into account the material orthotropy.
Eq. (2) could be posed in the synthetic form:
scr 1
⫽ (3)
su l2
where l is defined as the mechanical slenderness of the local buckling phenomenon
and its expression results in:
冑
bs 12 1
冪
su·(1−nxynyx)
l⫽ · ·
冑
· (4)
tf p a·b Ex

The factor a depends on the shape factor r of Eq. (1), i.e. the ratio between the
flange and the web slenderness; in Fig. 6 the values of a for the cases numerically
analyzed are shown for the isotropic material; in the same graph the well-known
limits of the pinned condition (a=0.425) and the fixed one (a=1.277) are also indi-
cated. The numerical results are not contained within the two limits, for the clear
influence of the elements’ dimensions; when the flange half-width is low (bs=50–80
mm) the length of the element also is stocky and the bi-dimensional behavior of the
 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 219

Fig. 6. The coefficient a vs the shape factor r.

web has a relevant effect on the web restraint action, therefore a is higher than the
fixed condition factor. Conversely, when the ratio r is very low (web slenderness
much higher than flange slenderness) local buckling of the web could occur before
or could interact with the flange buckling, resulting in a values lower than the
pinned limit.
The definition of a simplified analytical expression of a, taking into account the
web restraint action on the flange, is carried out satisfying the two limit conditions
of pinned and fixed along the web–flange connection side. Furthermore, the linear
formulation is chosen and its expression is obtained for the isotropic material by
regression of the numerical cases with bs=100 mm, with the lower h/tw ratio, i.e.
when web buckling is avoided and the effect of restraint edges is low, providing
lower values of a.
The proposed line is reported in Fig. 6 and the results appear to be safe in just
about all the cases. It is also clear that for r⬎1.15 the restraint of the flange could
be assumed as fixed. In conclusion the factor a is evaluated as follows:
for r⬍0.3 a=0.425
for 0.3ⱕr⬍1.152 a=r+0.125 (5)
for 1.152ⱕr a=1.277

As regards the coefficient b of Eq. (1), it has been assumed the meaningful para-
meter is the ratio between the longitudinal and the transversal Young’s moduli,
according to the hypothesis that the ratio G/Ey is invariant; the numerical results vs
Ex/Ey have been analyzed and the exponent has been evaluated minimizing the stan-
dard deviation between the theoretical and numerical results.
The expression obtained is:

b⫽ 冉冊
Ex
Ey
0.85
(6)
220 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222

Fig. 7. Comparison of the buckling curve proposed, to the numerical results.

In Fig. 7 the same numerical results as Fig. 5 are represented considering the vari-
ation of non-dimensional critical stress vs the mechanical slenderness l defined by
Eq. (4); the points are scattered low especially for high slenderness values. In the
same graph the theoretical buckling curve according to Eq. (3) is reported; the curve
is in good agreement with the points, though in some cases for low values of l it
is not safe, due to the interaction of the web buckling, as already discussed.
Finally, in Fig. 8 the buckling curve is compared to the experimental results. In
the cases characterized by different Young’s moduli for the flange and the web, the
parameter r of Eq. (1) has been modified as follows:

r⫽ · · f冉冊
bs tw Ewy
tf h Ey
0.5
(7)

where Ewy and Efy are the transversal moduli of the web and the flange respectively.
The analytical curve is nearly always safe; the experimental results in compression
are in good agreement with the analytical curve, while the results of the bending

Fig. 8. Comparison of the buckling curve to the experimental results.

 M. Pecce, E. Cosenza / Thin-Walled Structures 37 (2000) 207–222 221

tests show higher values of the critical stress, confirming that the buckling curve in
compression is safe with respect to the bending load condition.
The formulation developed is a key issue for a very simple design procedure for
FRP profiles, avoiding a premature crisis of the elements due to local buckling, and
permitting a better use of the material strength. Validation of the method is provided
by calculating the design critical stress scr,d (Eq. (3)) for the experimental cases; the
results are shown in Table 2 confirming the safety of the formulation in most cases.

5. Conclusion

The experimental tests on FRP profiles with glass fibers carried out by many
researchers have confirmed that the design is governed by buckling, making the
strength of the material not utilizable. In particular local buckling is related to the
section shape, therefore its characterization is also indispensable not only for the
verification and design of stocky elements, for example in truss structures, but it is
also useful for reviewing and optimizing the actual shapes which have been realized
copying the traditional steel profiles.
Regarding this topic, the present study has proved the following points:

앫 It is confirmed that the FEM, also taking into consideration the shear strain, is a
reliable method for providing the critical load due to local buckling;
앫 The local buckling of the flange depends not only on the slenderness of the flange
itself but also on the ratio between the slenderness of the flange and of the web;
앫 An analytical formulation of a buckling curve for flange local buckling is
developed individuating the expression of a mechanical slenderness that is com-
prehensive of all the parameters of the problem;
앫 The formulation proposed provides an easy design method for I-shaped profiles
when flange local buckling governs the structural behavior, that is safe in most
experimental cases considered.

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