BEAMS

5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 BENDING STRESS AND THE PLASTIC MOMENT
To be able to determine the nominal moment strength Mn, we must first examine the
behavior of beams throughout the full range of loading, from very small loads to the
point of collapse.

Flexure formula

Maximum stress

This formula are valid as long as the loads are small enough that the material
remains within its linear elastic range. For structural steel, this means that the
stress fmax must not exceed Fy and that the bending moment must not exceed,

The plastic moment capacity, which is the moment required to form the plastic
hinge, can easily be computed from a consideration of the corresponding stress distribution.
In Figure 5.5, the compressive and tensile stress resultants are shown, where
Ac is the cross-sectional area subjected to compression, and At is the area in tension.
These are the areas above and below the plastic neutral axis, which is not necessarily
the same as the elastic neutral axis. From equilibrium of forces,

Thus, the plastic neutral axis divides the cross section into two equal areas. For shapes
that are symmetrical about the axis of bending, the elastic and plastic neutral axes are
the same. The plastic moment, Mp, is the resisting couple formed by the two equal and
opposite forces, or

5.3 STABILITY
Lateral-torsional buckling can be prevented by bracing the beam against twisting at sufficiently close
intervals.

5.4 CLASSIFICATION OF SHAPES

5.5 BENDING STRENGTH OF COMPACT SHAPES

Summary of Nominal Flexural Strength
The nominal bending strength for compact I and C-shaped sections can be summarized
as follows:
5.6 BENDING STRENGTH OF NONCOMPACT SHAPES

5.7 SUMMARY OF MOMENT STRENGTH

5.8 SHEAR STRENGTH
From elementary mechanics of materials, the shearing stress is,

AISC Specification Requirements for Shear

For LRFD, the relationship between required and available strength is,

For ASD, the relationship is,

Case 1: For hot-rolled I shapes with

Case 2: For all other doubly and singly symmetric shapes,

and Cv is determined as follows:

Allowable Stress Formulation

The allowable strength relation

can also be written in terms of stress as

Where
5.9 DEFLECTION

5.10 DESIGN
1. Compute the required moment strength (i.e., the factored load moment Mu for
LRFD or the unfactored moment Ma for ASD). The weight of the beam is part
of the dead load but is unknown at this point. A value may be assumed and verified
after a shape is selected, or the weight may be ignored initially and checked
after a shape has been selected. Because the beam weight is usually a small part
of the total load, if it is ignored at the beginning of a design problem, the selected
shape will usually be satisfactory when the moment is recomputed.
2. Select a shape that satisfies this strength requirement. This can be done in one
of two ways.
a. Assume a shape, compute the available strength, and compare it with the
required strength. Revise if necessary. The trial shape can be easily selected
in only a limited number of situations (as in Example 5.10).
b. Use the beam design charts in Part 3 of the Manual. This method is preferred,
and we explain it following Example 5.10.
3. Check the shear strength.
4. Check the deflection.
5.10 Design
5.11 FLOOR AND ROOF FRAMING SYSTEMS
The overall objective of a structure is to transmit loads to the foundation. As far
as floor loads are concerned, this transmission of loads is accomplished as follows:
1. Floor loads, both live and dead, are supported by the floor slab.
2. The weight of the slab, along with the loads it supports, is supported by the
floor beams.
3. The floor beams transmit their loads, including their own weight, to the girders.
4. The girders and their loads are supported by the columns.
5. The column loads are supported by the columns of the story below. The column
loads accumulate from the top story to the foundation.
5.12 HOLES IN BEAMS
The AISC Specification requires that bolt holes in beam flanges be accounted for
when the nominal tensile rupture strength (fracture strength) of the flange is less than
the nominal tensile yield strength—that is, when

Where
Where

then AISC F13.1 requires that the nominal flexural strength be limited by the condition
of flexural rupture. This limit state corresponds to a flexural stress of

The AISC requirement for holes in beam flanges can be summarized as follows:
If

The nominal flexural strength cannot exceed

Where

5.13 OPEN-WEB STEEL JOISTS

Open-web steel joists are prefabricated trusses of the type shown in Figure 5.34. Many
of the smaller ones use a continuous circular bar to form the web members and are commonly
called bar joists. They are used in floor and roof systems in a wide variety of structures.
For a given span, an open-web joist will be lighter in weight than a rolled shape,
and the absence of a solid web allows for the easy passage of duct work and electrical
conduits. Depending on the span length, open-web joists may be more economical than
rolled shapes, although there are no general guidelines for making this determination.
5.14 BEAM BEARING PLATES AND COLUMN BASE PLATES

Web Yielding
Web yielding is the compressive crushing of a beam web caused by the application of
a compressive force to the flange directly above or below the web.
the area at the support subject to yielding is tw(2.5k + lb). Multiplying this area by the yield stress gives the
nominal strength for web yielding at the support:
The bearing length lb at the support should not be less than k.
At the interior load, the length of the section subject to yielding is,

and the nominal strength is

Web Crippling
Web crippling is buckling of the web caused by the compressive force delivered
through the flange. For an interior load, the nominal strength for web crippling is,

For a load at or near the support (no greater than half the beam depth from the end),
the nominal strength is,

Or

The resistance factor for this limit state is f = 0.75. The safety factor is Ω = 2.00.
Concrete Bearing Strength
The nominal bearing strength specified in AISC J8 is the same as that
given in the American Concrete Institute’s Building Code (ACI, 2008) and may be
used if no other building code requirements are in effect. If the plate covers the full
area of the support, the nominal strength is,

If the plate does not cover the full area of the support,

Where,

5.15 BIAXIAL BENDING

Biaxial bending occurs when a beam is subjected to a loading condition that produces
bending about both the major (strong) axis and the minor (weak) axis.
Case I: Loads Applied Through the Shear Center
If loads act through the shear center, the problem is one of simple bending in two
perpendicular directions. As illustrated in Figure 5.47, the load can be resolved into
rectangular components in the x- and y-directions, each producing bending about a
different axis.

Where,

For ASD,

Where,

Case II: Loads Not Applied Through the Shear Center

When loads are not applied through the shear center of a cross section, the result is flexure
plus torsion. If possible, the structure or connection geometry should be modified to
remove the eccentricity. The problem of torsion in rolled shapes is a complex one, and
we resort to approximate, although conservative, methods for dealing with it.
5.16 BENDING STRENGTH OF VARIOUS SHAPES
I. Square and Rectangular HSS and Box-Shaped Members (AISC F7):
II. Round HSS (AISC F8):
III. Tees Loaded in the Plane of Symmetry (AISC F9):
IV. Double Angles Loaded in the Plane of Symmetry (AISC F9 and F10):
V. Solid Rectangular Bars (AISC F11): The applicable limit states are yielding and
LTB for major axis bending; local buckling is not a limit state for either major
or minor axis bending.
VI. Solid Circular Bars (AISC F11):