l
GLADDING PLACE
STEEL DESIGN and CONSTRUCTION BULLETIN
From the HERA Structural Engineering Division
No. 4
Introduction
The following items are being covered in this issue:
(i) Restriction on headed shear stud sizes
available for effective through-deck shear stud
welding.
(ii) Comparison of weld desig'n capacity under the
new limit state and the old strengthlworking
stress design provisions.
Product availability of circular hollow sections
(iii)
for structural applications.
(iv) Design queries asked and answered; three
queries are covered in this issue.
R e s t r i c t i o n s o n Proorietarv Headed Shear
S t u d s Available f o r Effective Throuah-Deck
Shear S t u d Weldinq
Reason for Restriction
The proprietary headed arc welded shear stud
(hereafter just referred to as the shear stud) is typically
the most cost-effective method of structurally
connecting a concrete slab with a supporting steel
beam to form a composite unit. The design
requirements for shear stud use in composite
construction are contained in Section 13 of NZS
3404:1992 [la], with explanation to many of these
requirements given in the Commentary to Section 13
[ l bl.
These requirements cover use of shear studs both
welded directly to a steel beam and welded through
profiled steel deck to the beam. Welding in both cases
is covered by AS 1554.2 [2], with additional material
presented in section 13 of the HERA Design Guides
Volume 2 [3].
When welding a shear stud to a steel beam, a ceramic
arc shield ferrule is used as an arc shield and for weld
containment. The correct use of this arc shield is vital
to the success of the finished weld. The arc shield
slips over the stud and sits around its base during
welding. The edge in contact with the beam or with the
steel deck, as appropriate, has a saw-tooth profile,
thus creating gaps through which gasses can be
expelled during the welding process.
Welding through-deck requires the zinc fumes and
molten zinc globules obtained from vaporisinglmelting
the galvanising layer on the steel deck to be expelled
from the weld zone. This requires greater vent holes in
the arc shield and means that, especially in the larger
stud diameters, the specific arc shield for through-deck
welding must be used if the stud welding is to deliver
consistent, dependable quality. Designers and
specifiers need to be aware of the constraints that this
may impose on the range of stud diameters available
for through-deck welding.
P o BOX 76 134
MANUKAU CITY
NEW ZEALAND
TEL 0-9-262 2885
FAX 0-9-262 2856
OCTOBER 1994
O ~ t i o n sAvailable
One of the principal stud welders operating in New
Zealand has issued the following advice on availability
of arc shields for through-deck welding:
For stud diameters of 19 or 22mm (314 or 718
(1)
inch) diameter, a suitable arc shield is available
only for the 19mm diameter stud.
For stud diameters of 16 or 12mm diameter, the
(2)
arc shield for welding direct to the beam (clean
beam welding) can be used for through-deck
welding, with a suitably experienced operator.
(3) When undertaking through-deck welding with a
12mm diameter stud, care needs to be taken to
ensure the stud is not simply welded to the deck
instead.of through the deck into the beam, as is
required. Establishing the appropriate
equipment settings to avoid the former situation
is undertaken by correctly following the pre-
qualification procedure specified in AS 1554.2.
Comoression o f Fillet Weld C a ~ a c i t v Under
the New and Old Desian Provisions
Differences
Designers using the working stress method of design
would, typically, have read off the safe load for the fillet
weld from the appropriate table of the Safe Load Tables
for Structural Steel. (In the sixth edition, this was on
page 183). Designers using the strength method of
design would have multiplied this value by 1.67.
The same designers, in changing over to the limit state
method of design, would now read the design capacity
from Table 7.2.4 - 1 or Table 7.4.2 - 2 of the Design
Capacity Tables [4].
In comparing the format of the old and new tables and
the design values given in them, designers would note
the following differences:
(1) The working stress table had different values for
longitudinal and transverse weld orientation, but
did not mention the weld category.
(2) The limit state tables have different values for
weld category, but do not mention weld
orientation.
(3) The limit state values are lower than one would
get from converting the working stress values to
strength design values through multiplying by
the factor of 1.67.
Exolanation of these Differences
The differences described in (1) - (3) above arise for the
following reasons:
(l) The previous standard (NZS 340431 9891AS
1250:1981) required the stresses on the weld
failure plane to be separated into shear and
normal components and then combined
 according to a strict von-Mises combination.
This resulted in a fillet weld exhibiting 23%
greater design strength in the transverse
direction than in the longitudinal direction, which
is actually in accordance with experimentally
obtained results.
It considerably complicated the design for welds
under combined actions, however, and was often
not correctly applied in practice. The decision
was t h e r e f o r e made, i n preparing
NZS 3404:1992, to change to the vectorial
method of combining actions on the weld failure
plane. This gives the same design capacity as
was previously obtained for the longitudinal
orientation, but is much easier to apply in
practice.
Refer to NZS 3404:Part 2 Commentary Clause
C9.7:3.10[1 b] for a more detailed explanation of
this change and to section 10.6.4.3.2 of the
HERA Design Guides Volume 1 [5] for further
background on its application in design.
,The previous Australian standard, AS1250:1981,
(2)
specified the design criteria for a category SP
weld and required the permissible weld strength
to be halved for category GP welds. Thus, the
safe loads for fillet welds given in the Safe Load
T a b l e s were for category SP welds to
AS 1250:1981 and required halving for category
GP welds.
In New Zealand, however, AS 1250:1981 was
used under the umbrella of NZS 3404:1989. This
specified class A and B welds, to
NZS 4701:1981. Both these classes had the
same design capacity, equal to that of a
category SP weld to AS 1250:1981, with the
class B weld having a higher standard of quality
than the Australian category GP. (Refer to NZS
3404:1992:Part 2 Commentary Clause C9.7.1.4
for a description of the linkage between the old
class A & B and the new category SP & GP
welds).
NZS 3404:1992 has adopted the weld category
system, with its attendant design capacity
difference between category SP and GP. Hence
the need for two tabulations of weld capacity,
based on weld category. (The old Safe Load
Tables also should have either published another
table for category GP, or at least put a note to
the effect that category GP safe loads were to
be taken as half the tabulated safe loads).
As stated in explanation ( l ) above, the limit state
(3)
design capacities must be compared with the
safe loads for longitudinally oriented welds under
the working stress or strength provisions. . In
addition, the strength reduction factor is slightly
greater than was previously the equivalent case,
to give a greater level of reliability to design of
connectors than is applied for design of
members. See NZS 3404:Part 2 Commentary
Clause C3.l(c) for more on this; references to
more detailed papers are also given in the
references to Section C3 [ l b].
(4) If the factors mentioned in (1) - (3) above are
properly incorporated into a comparison between
the old and new weld capacities, than a direct
comparison between them can be shown. This
involves:
(i) Using the safe loads given for the longitudinal
weld orientation from the Safe Load Tables
(ii) Multiplying by 110.6 = 1.67 to get a strength
method value (for category SP)
(iii) Adjusting the answer by the difference in
strength reduction factor = 0.810.9.
As an example, for a 5mm leg length fillet weld,
E41 electrodes, the old values adjusted by (i) -
(iii) above give 0.56 kNlmm, which is the new
design capacity for an E41 category SP weld.
Product Availabilitv o f Circular Hollow
Sections ICHS) f o r S t r u c t u r a l Applications:
A Caution t o Desianers
General Backaround to CHS for Structural Ao~lications
Traditionally, circular hollow sections have not seen
widespread use as structural members in New Zealand.
This situation is now changing, as engineers start to
realise the potential cost-effectiveness of these
sections as column members, either acting as bare
steel members or filled with concrete and acting as
composite concrete-filled columns. Advances in
fabrication techniques, which allow rigid (or semi-rigid)
connections to be cost-effectively made to the CHS
members, are further enhancing their potential. HERA
is advising the profession on appropriate uses for
these members from time to time, through our general
technical promotion and also on a project-specific
basis through the Steel Structures Analysis Service
(SSAS). We are also engaged in research on the
performance of a seismic-resisting system comprising
concrete-filled CHS columns and steel I-beams, with
three different forms of connection detail. This work is
being undertaken principally by Peter Phelan, at the
University of Canterbury, with some contribution from
Charles Clifton.
Current Situation Reaardina Ex-Stock Product
Availability
NZS 3404 [ l ] is written for design of CHS members
manufactured to any of the following specifications:
AS 1163 Welded and seamless steel sections
for general structural purposes.
894848.2 Hot-rolled structural steel hollow
sections.
BS6363 Welded cold-formed structural steel
hollow sections.
These Standards specify end product with material and
mechanical properties that are consistent with the
assumptions implicit in the member design provisions
of NZS 3404. This means that, provided the correct
specified minimum yield stress, f y , is used in design,
dependable member performance will be achieved
through compliance with the provisions of NZS 3404.
Hollow sections supplied to AS 1163 are typically to
Grade C350, ie. fy = 350 MPa.
Unfortunately, no proprietary CHS members
manufactured to these. standards are currently
available ex-stock in New Zealand. The only CHS
members supplied ex-stock are to material supply
standards for non-structural application. A summary of
these is given in Table 1.
 Specification Description Comment

BS 1387 Steel tubes suitable for screwing Minimum specified yield stress
to BS 21 pipe threads. = 195 MPa; c.f. typical minimum
specified yield stress for CHS from
AS 1163 = 350 MPa.
BS 3059 Steel boiler and superheated Not structural
tubes
BS 3601 Steel tubes for pressure and Not structural
BS 3602 elevated temperature purposes
ASTM A1 06 B Carbon steel pipe for high Not structural
API 5L B temperature service
Table I: Material-Supply Standards For CHS Members Cur,rently Available Ex-stock in New Zealand
. . .
I Design_ Problems From This S ~ t u m
The material and mechanical properties of steels Designers designing proprietary CHS members for
specified to some or all of the standards given in structural applications need to recognise that the
Table 1 may vary considerably from that specified for above unsatisfactory situation regarding ex-stock
structural design application to NZS 3404. These product availability exists and take the following steps
variations may involve: in the short-term to avoid potential performance
problems with their designs.
(1) Specified yield stresses ranging from
140 to 240 MPa, compared with the 350 MPa for (1) Consult a steel supplier's handbook for a listing
typical sections from AS 1163. Furthermore, of the CHS sizes that are available ex-stock and
any one stockist may have a range of sections for notification of the material supply standard
with very similar diameter and wall thickness, that these sizes are manufactured to.
but manufactured to different standards and
with very different values of fy . (2) Use the minimum specified yield stress, fy,
associated with this material supply standard.
(2) Important material and mechanical properties Do not assume a value of fy .
such as carbon Equivalent, ratio of fy 1 f, and
minimum percentage elongation that do not (3) If the material supply standard is not one of the
comply with the requirements of the specified standards listed in NZS 3404 Clause 2.2.1
standards in NZS 3404 and hence will not meet . (which will currently be the case), and the
the performance requirements required by the section slenderness to NZS 3404 Clause 5.2.2
design provisions of NZS 3404. is less than, say, 25 (ie. the section is thick-
walled), apply a factor of 0.75 to the section
(3) Especially in the thick-walled CHS members, the capacity in bending or compression, as
residual stresses may be much higher than are calculated in accordance with NZS 3404, to
assumed in the design provisions for NZS 3404 account for a potentially more unfavourable
(which use the residual stresses generated by residual stress distribution in the member than
manufacture to eg. AS 1163). This can lead to is allowed for in the design provisions of
yielding of the cross-section in bending or NZS 3404.
compression much earlier than assumed in
design, even under serviceability loading, (4) Specify clearly the CHS sizes and the material
resulting in excessive in-service deflection and supply standard used in design and specify that
permanent deformation. the material supplier and fabricator provide
written certification that compliance with both is
In addition, structural engineers need information on achieved on the job.
the dimensions and section properties necessary for (The construction reviewer must check that this
design. Ideally, this information should be available in documentation is supplied and should make
a format suitable for design directly to NZS 3404 (or spot checks to confirm that the material being
AS 4100). This involves listing Zenkf, compactness used matches the documentation supplied).
status. The material for CHS members listed in the
AlSC Design Capacity Tables [4] provides this data, (5) Do not accept any substitutions for specified
however none of these CHS members are available ex- sizes unless a check on the appropriate
stock in New Zealand. Most of the suppliers' material properties is undertaken and any
handbooks list only the gross section properties, differences are incorporated into the design.
requiring designers to calculate the relevant design Actions Beina Taken to Rectifv this Situation
section properties in accordance with NZS 3404
Clauses 5.2 or 6.2. The Fletcher Steel catalogue [6] is HERA has advised the steel merchants of this current
an exception in that it lists the design properties for use unsatisfactory situation regarding ex-stock supply of
with NZS 3404, even though the CHS sizes listed CHS and suggested a suitable range of CHS sizes to
therein are to ASTM A1 06 B or API 5L Grade B. AS 1163, grades C250 and C350, that should be
stocked. This range has been selected on the basis of
suiting structural designers, while providing, as best we
can assess, sufficient through-put to be commercially
viable to the merchant.
This dialogue has just commenced and it will be some
time before a final satisfactory answer is obtained. We
will keep you informed of progress.
As a final important point, designers should note that
rectanaular hollow sections (RHS) to AS 1163
readily available in New Zealand, hence the above
problem is confined to proprietary CHS members.
Spiral welded pipe (SWP) can also be dependably
designed to NZS 3404;in this instance designers.must, .
obtain the section properties and steel grades from the>
manufacturer, Humes Steelpipe Ltd.
Desian Queries Asked and Answered
Three design queries are presented in this issue, all
relating to application of NZS 3404 Section 5 or
Section 6.
Quew No. 1
For the rafter segment shown in Fig. I, what is the
appropriate value of moment modification factor, a,,
to use in design to NZS 3404 Clause 5.6,for each of the
cases shown.
(In each instance, the rafter can be considered loaded
by a UDL for design purposes, although the load is
actually applied through the individual purlins).
Case 1
P resulting from any loading condition on the
F Case 2.
/ m w w 9
/ directly from Clause 5.6.1.1 (a) (iii). This
- requires knowing the values of moment at the
4 5 .+SS +65 +60 +S0
Fig. 1
Notes to Fig. 1 :
1. All bending moments are in kNm.
2. The values of bending moment have been scaled off
the drawing and are for illustrative purposes only.
3. The restraint conditions at the ends of the segment
could be either P or F; it does not alter the value of
a, obtained.
Before answering this query, it is suggested that
designers explicitly identify each bending
moment/loading condition given in Table 5.6.1 of
NZS 3404 by numbering these items 1-10down the left
hand side of the table. This will be done in the Standard
[I] at the time of the first amendment and makes
referencing particular bending moment/loading
conditions straightforward and unambiguous. ltem 1 is
therefore the beam segment subject to a linear bending
moment distribution only; item 10 is the cantilever
subject to a UDL.
The answer is given below for each case. It is obtained
from two sources; firstly from Table 5.6.1 of NZS 3404
and secondly from using Clause 5.6.1.l (a) (iii) - ie. the
equation given on page 80 of the Standard.
, . . Answer.to Case l :
(i) Using Table 5.6.1
It is important to use the correct determination
of p,, noting that there are two formulations
used, one of which apps to segments loaded
only at the end (Item 1 in Table 5.6.1) and the
second of which applies to segments loaded
transversely between their ends (Items 4-7in
Table 5.6.1).The method for determining p, is
quite different in each case; see NOTE (2) to the
Table. Case 1 involves the second formulation.
For Case 1, use of Table 5.6.1 involves
selecting the item number whose moment
distribution most closely resembles the design
case under consideration. For this case, it is
item 6. The actual design case will be slightly
better (more conducive to lateral stability) than
the moment distribution for item 6,thus this item
will generate a slightly conservatively low value
of a,. When applying item 6, p, = ratio of
design end moment to fully fixed end moment,
, taken as positive. For the moment distribution
and the magnitude of UDL (not stated herein),
this gives a value for p, = 0.98, resulting in
a, = 2.1 8 being obtained.
(ii) Using Clause 5.6.1.l (a) (iii)
For any moment distribution along a segment
with full or partial restraint at both ends,
segment, the value of a, can be determined
segment quarter and mid-points; see the values
used herein in Fig. 1. This option gives a value
of a, = 2.24,compared with a, = 2.18 from
using item 6 of Table 5.6.1. The value of a,
from
(a) (iii) would be expected to be slightly greater,
for the reason given in (i) above; scaling errors
in taking the moment value off the diagram could
also explain part or all of the difference.
Answer to Case 2:
This case involves a moment distribution which is
almost uniform along the segment, and hence lies
between that of item 8 from Table 5.6.1 and item 6 (with
Pm = 0,- ie. simply supported at both ends). ltem 8
gives a, = 1.0 and item 6, for p, = 0, gives
a, = 1.13. A suitable design approach would be to
take the middle value between them, giving a, = 1.07.
Use of the Clause 5.6.1.1 (a) (iii) equation gives
a
, = 1.06 in this instance, using moments scaled off
the bending moment diagram, with the magnitudes used
shown in Fig. 1 above.
Conclusion to design query Number 1:
The value of a, can be derived from two sources; use
of NZS 3404 Table 5.6.1, involving interpolation as
required, or use of the equation given in Clause 5.6.1 .l
(a) (iii). Remember that each option applies to
segments with both ends restrained. The answers
obtained from each source should always be similar,
such that, in practice, only one option would be used,
however they will not necessarily be identical.
How does one evaluate the effective section modulus,
Ze , for the half-circle section shown in Fig. 2. This is a
plate section, curved into a half circle, and being used
to carry water. It is being designed as self-supporting
between end supports.
l
Fig. 2.
Answer:
First, the elastic section modulus, Z y , must be
calculated. This may be obtained from Formulas for)
Stress and Strain [7], where it is given by Item 19 from,
Table 1 therein. This table gives ly and X,
Zy = iy 1 X., (Note some differences in notation in
[7] to that given above).
Once Zy is obtained, then Z, is determined as
follows:
(i) Consider the sides of the half-circle above the
elastic neutral y-axis (ie. in compression) as flat
plates in non-uniform compression and
calculate a section slenderness in accordance
with Clause 5.2.2, using this as the critical
element.
(ii) Compare this value with the limit given in
NZS 3404 Table 5.2 for a flat plate element with
one longitudinal edge supported and subject to
maximum compression at the unsupported
edge, zero stress or tension at the supported
edge.
For this section cold bent from plate, the yield
limit for CF = 22 is appropriate.
(iii) Categorise the section and calculate Zey from
the appropriate of Clauses 5.2.3 - 5.2.5. If the
section is non-compact or compact, then
Zey > Z y is obtainable, provided that Sy
(the plastic section modulus) is known. Rather
than calculating this, it can be assessed as
being at least equal to 1.l6 Z y in accordance
with Fig. 5.25 and equation -5.29 of Design
Guides Volume 1 [5].
Querv No. 3
When dealing with a narrow flat plate element with
neither longitudinal edge supported;
(i) What is the section status for bending about the
major principal x-axis?
(ii) What value of form factor, kf, is used when the
member is subject to uniform compression?
Answer:
(i) In bending, the section status is taken as
compact, thus giving ,Z, = 1.5 Z, in
accordance with Clause 5.2.3. Such a section
will, however, be prone to lateral buckling, thus
its x-axis moment capacity will typically be
governed by member capacity rather than by
section capacity. This guidance is also given in
the third-to-last paragraph of Commentary
Clause C5.2.2 on page 51 of NZS 3404: Part 2
[l bl.
(ii) Wtien the member is subject to design
compression and not restrained between its
ends, the section capacity in compression
should be determined using kf = 1.0. The
capacity of the member will, however, be
governed by buckling about the y-axis, so y-
axis member capacity will limit the design
capacity of such a member.
References:
la NZS 3404:Part l:l992, Steel Structures
Standard; Standards New Zealand, Wellington,
New Zealand.
tb NZS 3404:Part 2:1992, Commentary to the Steel
Structures Standard; Standards New Zealand,
Wellington, New Zealand.
2. AS 1554:Part 2:1993, Structural Steel Welding,
Part 2: Stud Welding; Standards Australia,
Sydney; Australia.
3. HERA; New Zealand Structural Steelwork
Design Guides, Volume 2 (Incorporating
Amendment Number 3); HERA, Manukau City,
New Zealand, 1991.
4. Design Capacity Tables for Structural Steel,
First Edition; Australian Institute of Steel
Construction, Sydney, 1991.
5. Clifton G.C.; New Zealand Structural.Steelwork
Limit State. Design Guides Volume I; HERA,
Manukau City, 1994.
6. Structural Steel Properties and Design Charts,
1992 Edition; Fletcher Steel, New Zealand,
1992.
7. Roark, R.J. and Young, W.C.; Formulas for
Stress and Strain, Fifth Edition; McGraw-Hill
International, Tokyo, Japan, 1983.
References 1 to 5 are available from HERA Information
Centre.