Assessment of the ultimate response of composite slab panels

Abstract

It has been shown that steel-concrete composite floor systems can withstand loads and deflections far greater than those calculated by the traditional methods of design under fire conditions. In recent years, there has been considerable research focus directed towards developing the fundamental understanding of the complex behaviour of floor slabs and also improving the methods of analysis. Building on this work, the current paper describes the development and validation of a finite element model, developed using the ABAQUS software, which is capable of simulating the load-displacement response until failure. The model can represent the complexities of the behaviour including both the material and geometric nonlinearities and has been developed in five phases, including (i) unrestrained isolated strips (ii) restrained isolated strips (iii) unrestrained slabs (iv) restrained slabs and (v) an arrangement of three by three slab panels. The first four phases have been validated using data from tests on isolated elements and the current paper focuses mainly on the response of unrestrained two-way spanning slabs. The most salient parameters including boundary conditions, continuity and various other material and geometric properties are identified and studied. Comparisons with current design procedures are also discussed. The results of this investigation offer detailed insights into the key factors that govern the ultimate behaviour of buildings with composite floor systems under extreme loading conditions, and provide the essential background to enable the development of more performance-based design expressions.