STRESS-ANALYSIS OF AXIALLY LOADED T-TUBULAR JOINTS REINFORCED WITH DOUBLER PLATES

Reinforcing tubular joints using doubler plates has been a common indu strial practice as a last minute solution to resolve punching shear pr oblems due to axial compression. However, such reinforcements may have negative effects when the joints are subject to different loading con ditions. A parametric stress analysis of T reinforced welded round-to- round tubular joints subjected to axial tension has been performed usi ng the finite element technique. Sixteen sets of geometric parameters were used for the parametric study by varying three parameters, namely , doubler plate to chord thickness ratio, t(p)/T, brace diameter to do ubler plate length (width) ratio, d/l(p), and brace to doubler plate t hickness ratio, t/t(p). The said study shows that t(p)/T and t/t(p) ha ve significant effects on stress concentration factors but not d/l(p). The present results for T reinforced tubular joints are compared with those for the corresponding unreinforced joints obtained by the autho rs and other researchers. In general, the reinforced joints are as goo d as the corresponding unreinforced joints in withstanding axial tensi oning, provided that certain criteria for the selection of doubler pla tes are adopted.