Local buckling of side-plated reinforced-concrete beams. II: Experimental study

A series of experiments on side-plated reinforced-concrete beams is reporte d. The experiments are used to investigate the local buckling of mild steel plates bolted to the sides of reinforced concrete beams, and to verify the theoretical results obtained in Part I. Thirteen loading regimes have been undertaken on two simply supported beams. Within each loading run, a secti on of plate at a particular point along the beam was isolated, and the beam loaded until a local buckle was produced. Each new position gives a unique combination of inplane axial, bending, and shear plate actions. The result s are presented in graphical and tabular form, and conclusions are drawn fr om a comparison of the experimental and theoretical findings. Both beams we re eventually tested to failure, and the effect of local buckling on the ul timate strength and ductility of the composite beam was assessed.