Stiffening strategies for perforated plate girders under shear loading

This paper presents a numerical study on the effect of various stiffening strategies employed to improve the ultimate strength of perforated plate girder webs subject to shear loading. The postbuckling behavior of the plate girders with perforations stiffened with various types of stiffener under shear forces is investigated by means of nonlinear finite element analysis. Then, a comparative study is conducted to establish the best stiffener configuration (longitudinal and circular) according to girder and opening dimensions. Moreover, ultimate strength values are validated against experimental results found in the literature. Then, a parametric analysis is performed in order to study the structural behavior and ultimate strength by varying some key factors such as opening size and stiffener properties. Finally, some recommendations to enhance the ultimate strength of this type of girders are presented.