Finite element analysis of steel-concrete-steel sandwich beams

The static behaviour of Bi-Steel beams was simulated using a finite element model. The model was compared to test results showing good agreement. It was then used in parametric studies of transverse shear capacity and uniformly distributed load cases of Bi-Steel beams. It was possible to isolate the transverse shear failure mode and prevent other failure modes from using the FE model. This enabled the comparison and verification of the proposed design equations for transverse shear. Based on parametric studies, modifications to the design method were also proposed to accommodate udl cases. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.