On the rotation capacity of moment connections

The paper presents an analytical method for the determination of the rotation capacity of moment connections, based on the component method from prEN 1993-1-8. From test results and numerical simulations, simple analytical expressions for the deformation capacity of the components are derived. These values are subsequently used for the determination of the rotation capacity of the complete joint. Comparisons with tests on whole joints indicate a good agreement between analytical and experimental results. The method is fully consistent with the present rules of prEN 1993-1-8 and extends them to the numerical estimation of the rotation capacity. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.