Design Method for Local Buckling Resistance of Double Steel Plate–Concrete Composite Walls with Stiffening Ribs and Tie Plates

Abstract

An ordinary double steel plate–concrete composite wall (ODSC wall) is composed of core concrete, the faceplates, and shear connectors such as studs, etc. Based on an ODSC wall, a new type of stiffened double steel plate–concrete composite wall (SDSC wall) is conceived by incorporating additional stiffeners and tie plates on the internal surface, which aims to improve the local stability of the faceplates. In the authors’ previous study, a series of axial compression tests were conducted on the SDSC walls. The SDSC walls in the test showed better mechanical performance, as the presence of stiffeners changed the buckling deformation mode and significantly improved the corresponding local buckling stress and ultimate strength. In this paper, a comprehensive summary of the prior research on SDSC walls is provided, and the effect of the constructive parameters on the local stability is discussed. The results reveal that the modified formula of the critical stress can degrade to the Euler formula when the stiffener-to-stud spacing ratio (i.e., a/B ratio) approaches infinity. What is more, the analysis model is also applicable for DSC walls with enclosed side plates, and the proposed formula can predict the buckling stress of the SDSC walls with different a/B ratios. In addition, according to the analysis of the numerical simulation, a design approach for SDSC walls to prevent local buckling is provided, which is applicable in practical engineering applications.