ON QUASI-STATIC CRUSHING OF A STIFFENED SQUARE TUBE

The aims of this study are to obtain experimental data on the crushing of stiffened square tubes, and to develop a simple analytical express ion for predicting the mean crushing strength of stiffened plates maki ng up a plated structure. A series of axial crushing tests in a quasi- static condition was carried out on thin-walled square tubes which wer e composed of four identical panels. Specimens with longitudinal and/o r transverse stiffeners, including unstiffened specimens, were tested, varying dimensions of plate and stiffener. The effective crushing len gth and the mean crushing strength of the test specimens were investig ated. It was concluded that a longitudinally stiffened plate could rea sonably be replaced by an unstiffened plate with equivalent plate thic kness. Based on this approach, a simple expression for the effective c rushing length and the mean crushing strength of stiffened plates was derived.